Beast Boy and Raven
by writerzero
Summary: Beast Boy has his own problems to deal with. Raven has hers. How will their stories continue? Will they become hated enemies, or close friends? They each have something the other needs. Will they realize it in time? Or will things crumble apart? Rated M just to be safe.
1. Chapter 1

**I do NOT own Teen Titans.**

_Based on the cartoons and not any of the comics._

_Time: Around two months after Things Change. Excludes Trouble in Tokyo._

* * *

_**The Morning Begins,... Pie,... A Battle,... Another Fight,...**_

The hated morning came and briefly Beast Boy opened his dark green eyes before letting them close again. The light peeking above the horizon cast shadows on the ceiling, ruining the absolute darkness, and a small growl erupted from his throat before he could control the impulse. He focused on the dream. The golden hair, the blue eyes, the sound of her voice, the way she ran, ... Pain pierced his heart. The image his vision painted was nothing that an ordinary human could have comprehended. He had seen her with the eyes of an eagle. Hair that glowed with shades of gold that no human language had words for, luminous eyes that were a radiant... He twisted on the bed, trying to drive the image from his mind before he went crazy. Yet still he thought of her. Eyes that saw in the infrared giving her figure a glow that seemed supernatural...

Growling he twisted and looked at the beckoning window. The window from which she had asked him out on what he thought of as their first, and only, date. He could see her there now, amused at his antics in front of the mirror. He wanted, needed, to see her. And he could, should he so choose. Right now she would be going to school. In a few minutes she would be at its doors. Were he to shift into a White-throated Needletail he could cover the two miles to her school in a little over a minute and fifteen seconds. Should he choose to he could fly, unseen, a mile above the school and watch her as an eagle.

He hadn't done that, yet. In the two months since the day he'd learned she was alive he hadn't returned to that place. Hadn't seen her. Too do so would be to invite madness. She haunted his dreams and throughout the day his ears would imagine her voice, a scent would remind him of her, or he would see a brief instance of golden hair and be lost in thought.

Sighing he sat cross-legged on his bed and meditated, forcing his mind to clear. He had never needed any help controlling the beast that lurked inside of him, but that had changed. Unlike Raven and her mantra he hummed and let the sound vibrate through his being, bringing calmness. Relaxed he focused on picturing a white space filled with black dots. The whiteness was his mind and dots was the savage creature he sought to control. Gradually the dots moved, slowly yet steadily, into a large circle. Then he made the circle smaller and smaller until all the ferocity of the beast was contained in a small and safely contained dot. It was something he'd been doing for six weeks now and it helped. Not only that but he'd found he could access the raw primal power contained in that dot and use it when he shifted forms.

Opening his eyes he looked around, careful to avoid the window and the memories it would bring. The room was neat and orderly. A drastic contrast to what it would have been a few months ago. Should Terra's memories ever return he didn't want her to see him as the child he'd been. He wanted to be more, even if it was only for a dream he would never have. Hope alone was enough to motivate him, to drive him to be more than what he had been. Rising he went through a series of exercises before he took a shower.

* * *

A little over an hour later he was in the kitchen preparing breakfast. This too was something new. Before he had always been impatient and turned the stove up high, burning anything he'd ever tried to cook. Forcing him to settle for cereal, or wait for Cyborg. As it turned out the stove already produced temperatures higher than what the dials would indicate. He'd learned to get 400F he needed to set it to 320F. The burners were twenty-five percent hotter than what they should be. Soon a small pile of waffles appeared and then disappeared as he cooked and ate. He didn't bother with a plate. Rather he just poured syrup on each one and folded them like a sandwich.

A glance at a clock showed it to be nearly quarter after nine. He shrugged and cracked two eggs, only cringing a little as each poured forth their gooey interiors. It wasn't something he would ever eat, but he'd decided there was no need to make a big fuss over it. Turning he set the kettle to boil. Ten minutes later an egg and cheese sandwich sat on the table along with a cup of herbal tea. It was pretty minor but, he hoped, it helped to make up for the way he often annoyed Raven throughout the day. He would have prepared breakfast for the rest of the team but they would be sleep for another hour. Late nights watching movies, or playing games, didn't usually result in early risers. He was different. Not being entirely human he needed less sleep. Six hours was plenty. He took one last look at the meal he'd left for Raven before heading back to his room. Should Terra ever return he wanted to be able to do things. Like cook. It would be fun to invite her out on a picnic with a home cooked meal.

As the tower stirred to live around him, he studied. Or tried to. It wasn't as bad as he had thought it would be. Ten minutes of reading or working on math problems, followed by ten minutes of running around in a circle as a dog, chasing his own tail. Sitting still really wasn't in his nature. Yet he got through the assigned problems. School was definitely a place that would drive him crazy, but so long as he could take frequent breaks he could manage the work. His parents had been geneticists who had traveled a lot. They'd always made sure he was a grade or two above where he should be. Terra was going to school, and even before that she'd been more knowledgeable than him. Both in terms of academics and in the ways of the world. He didn't want to seem like an idiot if her memory should ever return. He wanted to be worthy of her.

The work done he spent another five minutes as a dog, running and stretching, before he headed down to see what was going on with the rest of the group. He might be trying to step up a little and be more responsible, but a video game with Cyborg was always good. With eighteen waking hours a day there was more than enough time to get things done and still have fun. Too be honest, the having fun part still took up the majority of his time. He hadn't changed quite that much.

"There's been a few break-ins lately on Main street." Robin's voice came through a door. "I want you to pick someone and patrol."

Beast Boy froze, listening. It could be fun to do a little patrolling.

"I'll take Cyborg." Raven's voice answered, sounding disinterested.

"Beast Boy might be a ..."

"Cyborg is better." Raven intoned, interrupting their leader.

"Okay. Your call. In two hours Starfire and I will relieve you."

A frown appeared on Beast Boy's face as he continued on his way. Having good hearing was a pain sometimes.

"Morning, friend Beast Boy." An exuberant voice exclaimed. "What will you do on this wonderous day?"

He turned to see Starfire beaming at him. He shrugged. "It seems I will be doing nothing."

The alien frowned. "Is something wrong friend Beast Boy?"

"No." He walked past the woman. "I'm going out." He told her, giving her a fake smile. Starfire was sensitive and whatever his mood he didn't want to upset her.

"Do you wish for me to accompany you?" She rose into the air so she hovered a foot off the ground. "We could go to the mall of shopping and visit the stores of music." She suggested, hopefully.

Beast Boy couldn't resist a smile at her excitement. "I think you and Robin will be going out on patrol in a bit." He said. "Wouldn't want to miss that."

The eyes of the alien lit up at the news. "Patrolling with my friend who is a boy." She exclaimed. "I must prepare. Thank you for the good news friend Beast Boy." Turning she flew up the stairs.

Outside he sighed and wondered what his purpose on the team was. Was he really that bad? Cyborg pulled triple duty keeping the tower running, the vehicles maintained, and helping when the really bad villains ran rampant. He knew that was the only reason Robin had suggested Raven take him. Twitching his ears he reached up and felt them. He'd been hearing a lot lately. Patrolling was something he was seldom called upon to do anymore. Other than when there was a serious fight he rarely had to do anything.

The sky was blue, a gentle breeze was blowing, the sun was shining,... Sighing he sifted into the form of a White-throated Needletail and took to the air. Soon he was skimming the ocean, travelling over a hundred miles per hour. This was a good form. Other than a bird of prey in a dive, it was the fastest creature of the air there was. Watching the ocean pass just inches from his eyes was hypnotic. He though of Terra and the way she'd traveled. He pushed the image from his mind and forced his muscles to their limits to maintain the speed at which he was moving. Titan's tower swiftly vanished in the distance behind him.

* * *

"Where's Beast Boy?" Robin asked in an exasperated tone. "I sent the notice over two hours ago." He'd called the team together for a general meeting, but one of those members was missing.

"Haven't seen him all day." Cyborg replied.

The leader turned to look at Raven.

"Don't know. Don't care." She intoned in a voice void of emotion. Closing her eyes she decided to meditate until the immature Titan showed up or they decided to continue without him. Worry nibbled at her and she imagined a huge boot smashing down out of the sky to smash it into the ground. Truth be told Beast Boy's behaviour of late had her worried, but worry was an emotion and hence was something to be crushed. Soon after she had crushed it once, it started nibbling at her again.

"I spoke with friend Beast Boy this morning." Starfire said. "I have not seen him since."

Robin sighed. "Raven go get him."

"Why bother?" The violet-haired girl spoke without opening her eyes.

"He's a part of the team." The leader replied. "He has a right to have a say at these meetings."

"Why me?" She had better things to do than chase after some immature brat. Such as meditating. Her emotional aspects had been giving her a lot of trouble lately.

"Because while we're waiting Cyborg can work on those new security protocols he's been meaning to install and I can discuss with Starfire how kissing someone to learn a new language isn't always a good idea." The later was said through clenched teeth with a brief incensed look towards the alien.

Raven didn't need to open her eyes to hear the poor woman gulp. Maybe getting out of the tower would be the prudent course.

* * *

Half an hour later Jump City was far behind her and she still had to reach the annoying Titan. She wondered what had brought him such a distance. The arcade he usually frequented was within the city, as were all the other places she knew of where he usually spent time. Using her communicator to scan for him she found he was close. _About time, _she couldn't help thinking to herself.

She blinked. Not knowing whether to be shocked, or just puzzled. The sign on the place read BENS and was sandwiched between what appeared to be two hamburger buns. She checked the communicator again. Yes, he was in there. She opened the door and walked in. There were menus on the tables and looking she saw they featured meat. A lot of meat. Hamburgers with bacon, hotdogs, steaks, roasts,...

Spotting the green-skinned Titan that had brought her so far she headed towards him. Worry nibbled at her again. What could have driven the tofu-crazed boy to come to such a place? He noticed her and looked up. Her pace slowed. There was a frown on his face and his look was dead serious. One of his fingers made a slight, barely noticeable, move indicating the stool to his left.

"The usual Pam." Beast Boy said, pointing towards her.

"So what brings you to such a place?" She tried asking, only to be ignored. He had turned away from her and was looking towards his right, as if the empty stool was occupied. She watched as he slowly lifted his fork and sliced a small piece from the pie in front of him. Contrary to his usual way of eating he used the utensil to lift the top part of the crust to his mouth and slowly chewed before swallowing. Puzzled she observed as he meticulously stabbed what appeared to be slices of apple and ate them one by one, just as slowly. Then he finished off the bottom part of the crust before slicing another small piece from the pie. _At least he's not eating meat, _she thought to herself. _That would really be something to worry about._ She looked up as a plate was placed in front of her.

She had planned to just grab him and drag him from whatever place she found him at, but it wouldn't hurt to eat. Despite herself she was curious. What sort of pie could compel the anti-meat shapeshifter to enter such a place. Taking the fork she tried a piece. Despite her self-control her eyebrows rose at the taste. She noticed Beast Boy had looked at her for just an instant, out of the corner of his eyes. A slight smile had briefly replaced the solemn look on his face. Irritated she took another bite, eating as slowly as she could.

As the last of the delicious treat disappeared she suppressed a sigh of satisfaction. She would have to remember this place. Looking up she was startled to see the boy who had started before her had yet to finish. His movements were still slow and precise. His attention still to his right.

"There was a meeting." She said.

He shrugged and took another bite.

She got the distinct impression she wasn't welcomed here. That was strange. Beast Boy always made it known, often annoyingly so, that she was welcome to join in any of the team's activities. He always gave the impression that he enjoyed her company. What made this place so different? She looked around. There were several people, all eating meat. It was a place that she would have though would make him intensely uncomfortable.

"Thanks for the pie, Pam. Delicious as alway." The boy dropped enough change for the two piece of pie, along with a generous tip, and headed for the door.

* * *

Outside she summoned a black disc and stepped on it. He joined her, sitting down. She focused her will and they lifted from the ground, heading back towards the tower. Out of the corner her eye she studied the green-skinned Titan who was staring off into space.

He turned around to look at her. "When I'm there I prefer to be left alone." He said.

"You mean like I would rather meditate or read than be annoyed so often?" She asked, keeping all hint of emotion from her voice.

He shrugged. "There's a difference. I go there, eat a piece of pie, and leave. I don't try to spend my entire life there." He turned back to staring into space.

She opened her mouth to speak but was interrupted.

"But if that's what you want then fine. I won't bother you when you're in your room anymore. And when you see me in that place you leave me alone."

She gulped, unable to control the sign of emotion. Inside all her emotional aspects stirred, and she was forced to concentrate on them. In truth she did prefer to watch a movie with the other Titans, or even sometimes, more rarely, read with the sound of Beast Boy and Cyborg arguing over a silly video game. But it took an invitation to make her, a half demon, feel comfortable joining them. To make her feel like she was welcomed. And he was the one who did that. Even Robin left her alone in her room. She tried to think, but was forced to focus on the disc and the emoticlones raging within her.

They were nearly back to the tower when her communicator began flashing red. If she let her focus on the disc fade they would drop into the ocean. Well she would. Beast Boy would probably just change into a bird. And if she moved her attention away from the emoticlones who knew what would happen. She couldn't afford the effort to answer the device.

Looking around the green-skinned Titan noticed the flashing communicator and the look of concentration on the violet-haired girl's face. He pulled out his own communicator. "What's up?" He asked.

"Where's Raven?" Robin's voice came from the device, sounding stressed.

"I think I made her mad again and she'd trying to keep from ripping my head off." He answered, giving the girl another brief glance.

Unintelligible mutterings came from the communicator. "Is she there?" Their leader's annoyed voice asked.

"Yeah. She can hear you."

"Big problem. There was a riot at the prison and several prisoners escaped. Cinderblock and Billy Numerous were seen heading towards the edge off the city where you two should run into them soon. Keep them busy while we deal with the other escapees and then we will join forces to take those two down."

"Okay." Beast Boy replied and looked up to Raven. She seemed to be having trouble. "You okay?" He asked.

She mentally groaned. '_STOP IT_!' She roared at the emoticlones. '_If I die, then you die too. All of you._' The rebellion subsided some. _What set them off, _she wondered with pain spiking through her skull. Closing her eyes she rubbed her temples.

"You okay Raven?" The green titan looked at the girl with worry.

"Shutup." She snapped before regaining control. Her eyes closed she didn't see the hurt look on her friend's face, or even realize how harshly she'd spoken. Opening her eyes she looked around. "Just how do we go about finding them?" She asked, trying not to sound sarcastic.

"Just take us up high." Beast Boy replied, voice neutral.

She gave a slight nod and the disc they rode lifted for the sky. The rebellion was over for now and the pain in her skull was just a memory. She could focus once again. As the disc reached an altitude of a mile or more she wondered just how high was high enough. The answer came before she could ask the question as the shapeshifter changed into an eagle and peered at the ground. After a few seconds he reached out his head, using it to point. Taking the hint she let the disc drop towards the indicated direction. Soon even she could pick out the huge form of Cinderblock. Briefly she wondered if it and Billy Numerous were working together or if it had been merely chance that had taken them in the same direction during their escape. Rubbing her temples again she changed the directions of her thoughts to the coming fight. Her internal struggle had her exhausted.

"Beast Boy." She said, with tiredness making her tone sound harsh. "You're going to have to help here more than usual."

He heard her tone and recalled that only this morning she'd claimed Cyborg was better to patrol with. In a form that couldn't show a frown he nodded and lifted for the sky.

Watching him leave she wondered where he was going. He was heading away from the two villains. Then a small car came at her and she had no attention to spare. The disc wove around the projectile and she reached out to infuse a part of soul with a bus that she sent slamming at Cinderblock. He went flying, but stood back up. Without a full team this was going to be hard. She wondered where Beast Boy had gone.

He streaked upward, wings grabbing the air to propel him higher and higher. Lately he'd been doing more than just walking into a fight and using whatever he found appropriate, whether it be tooth or claw or tail. He'd watched the way Robin fought. Each movement the basis for the next. A series of individual steps that became a dance where there was no beginning or end. Each flowing into the other without hesitation or pause. Much different from his own style of fighting. When he needed strength he became an elephant or a great ape. When he needed speed a bird or one of the great cats. He shifted form effortlessly to suit his purpose, but only for the purpose at hand, never thinking ahead to the next. He'd tried to incorporate the team leader's grace in battle into his own style of fighting. To make combos he could use and to move from one form to the next, anticipating the need, not just reacting.

Billy Numerous had appeared and, seeing her desperate struggle against Cinderblock, had joined in on the fun. A hundred of his clones were busy grabbing objects to charge her with while Cinderblock was busy throwing every vehicle he could find. She'd been forced into the air to avoid Billy Numerous and spent most of her effort tossing cars back at the concrete block. Still, she was in no danger and could manage this for a while. She was, however, irritated at the disappearance of Beast Boy.

He saw the battle below and turned into a Peregrine Falcon. He dove. As an elephant he could charge at a mere fifteen miles per hour. Strong as the beasts were they just weren't meant for speed. A lucky charge could knock Cinderblock off his feet, but did no damage. On the other hand the form he now possessed was speed incarnate. He plummeted towards the ground at an ever increasing velocity. Soon he hit two hundred and forty miles per hour. He reached for the raw primal power of the beast and waited. Just before impact he switched his form to that of an elephant, shoving a tiny amount of that power into the transformation. Rather than the normal five tons of an immature elephant the power altered the transformation to eight tons.

She infused her soul with another car and levitated it, swinging it in a circle. It knocked over a dozen Billy Numerous clones to the ground before she flung it at Cinderblock. Then a shockwave crashed out from the concrete beast, sending dust flying into the air, along with thirty to forty of the clones.

As soon as he impacted he switched his form to that of an amoeba. To take the full impact as an elephant would leave one very bloody, and probably dead, Beast Boy on top of the stunned formed of the concrete giant. An Amoeba on the other hand would be rapidly slowed by air resistance and the shockwave that would have ripped an elephant apart could be better absorbed by a creature that was practically nothing more than a drop of water. Just as quickly he switched to a T-rex and charged the clones he saw.

Picking up another car she used it to start battering the remaining Billy Numerous clones. Between the ones she'd knocked down before, and the shockwave, there weren't more than twenty left. She wondered about that shockwave. It had to have been caused by Beast Boy, but how? Then the twenty became a hundred.

He saw the telephone pole a group of clones was trying to use to charge him with and switched his form to that of a great ape, pushing a bit of the primal power of the beast into the transformation. He took the pole and started spinning it.

She could see the fight was over. Sure there were a hundred of the clones left but she was out of reach, using a car as a weapon. And Beast Boy was swinging a pole that forced them to keep their distance. They fell by the dozen and soon, as their ability to create more clones reached its limits, formed back into a single Billy Numerous who was unconscious. Cinderblock had not moved since Beast Boy had hit him with ... whatever he had hit him with. She relaxed and started to drop back to the ground.

* * *

"Azarath, Metrion, Zinthos," She intoned over and over. There was no sign of the rebellion her emoticlones had launched at her earlier. Focusing on tranquility and peace she intoned the words again. "Azarath, Metrion, Zinthos." Opening her eyes she looked at the time. Nearly ten p.m. At any moment Beast Boy would knock on her door and invite her down to watch some dumb movie. She waited. At a quarter after ten the knock still had to come. At ten thirty she knew it wasn't coming. She knew she was welcomed to join them but... She went back to her meditation.

The attack was swift and brutal. As one her emoticlones rose and struck. She gasped and grabbed a pillow to scream into. She entered battle, confused and feeling betrayed. Rage was there, but so was Happiness and Bravery. Even Timidity was struggling against her. For so long. other than Rage, they'd remained content within Nevermore. Why would they fight her now? What had happened? What had changed? Had Rage somehow corrupted them? They struck at her and she struck back. On the floor her body thrashed as she warred against herself.

* * *

End of Chapter.


	2. Chapter 2

**I do NOT own Teen Titans**

_Time: A few days later._

* * *

_**Morning Arrives,... The Pets,... The Oath,... Rebellion's End,...**_

The battle was futile and could not be won. She sat on her bed, not bothering to levitate. That took energy, which was something she didn't have. Looking around she noted the changes she'd made to her room. Everything within reach of the bed had been removed, least it get destroyed during the fights. The bed itself was demolished, leaving her with just a mattress on the floor. It was shredded, still it was better than nothing. She laid her head back on the remains of a pillow and stared at the ceiling.

She'd known Rage was powerful. What she hadn't known was just how powerful her other emoticlones were. Even Timidity could face her in battle and hold her own. That, to say the least, had shocked her. That the emoticlone that was supposed to be timid in nature would rear its head and dare to attack her was bad enough. That it could match her blow for blow was... Wearily she shook her head. What was happening? She recalled the last fight. The stone maze that was a part of her mind, that was supposed to be hers to command, had shifted at the will of the emoticlone. Walls had formed and disappeared leaving her trapped as Timidity had appeared and disappeared within the labyrinth at will. The emoticlone had hesitated to face her head on and had instead struck again and again from behind. But when forced, finally, into direct battle she hadn't flinched. She'd poured bolt after bolt of energy at Raven, forcing her to retreat. So much for starting with the weakest and working her way up.

They had to have been corrupted somehow by Rage, but there was no sign of it. For all she could tell they were acting alone, or at times forming groups of their own volition. With a few exceptions there seemed to be no reasoning with them. When she was in battle with a villain they would back off for a bit, or at times when she was eating. She guessed they didn't want to die either. She pushed herself to her feet and headed for the kitchen.

There she saw breakfast prepared for her as usual. Given she had no energy to spare for cooking she appreciated the offer. When she'd asked why, Beast Boy had simply said he was trying to learn how to cook and that she made a good guinea pig. There were pancakes this morning along with a cup of herbal tea. On a small plate there rested several strips of bacon. She took a piece and bit in. It was delicious. For some reason the emoticlones were quiet. She guessed even they had their limits. Actually since they were a part of her she knew they did. It just didn't seem that way when she was fighting them.

Two bottles of syrup stood beside the two plates and she picked one, using it to douse the pancakes. She tried them. They were cooked to perfection. She ate slowly, knowing soon as she was finished the battle would begin again. That one of the emoticlones would challenge her. Or worse, they might attack as group. She wondered what would happen to the Raven that was her should they overthrow her. Would she vanish? Or become an emoticlone of some sort? And if she became an emoticlone what would she represent? She took another piece of bacon and nibbled on it. She didn't want to die.

She finished the meal and stood, already sensing the struggle that was to come. Turning she walked towards her room.

"No no no." Robin yelled. "Like this."

Curious she stopped and peered into the training room she'd been walking past. Beast Boy and Robin were there. Watching them spar she realized the green-skinned Titan was getting their leader to try and teach him a few of his more advanced moves. The boy was already an expert at martial arts, but no one could match their leader. The boy was getting tossed around quite a bit.

"Hi Raven." Beast Boy called out, seeing her there. He got his feet. "Given the way this is going I've been thinking about switching my name to Punching Bag." He dodged backwards as Robin came at him and went flying again. He rolled to his feet.

_Fast, _Raven noted. _Just a bit faster and it would have been Robin who went flying._ She studied the boy some more, sensing a darkness within him.

"Morning Raven." Robin said, tracking his opponent.

"Morning." She finally replied. Turning away she continued to her room. She felt Rage struggling to take control. Knowledge was with her. That was insane. Why would the other emoticlones want to help the embodiment of evil? Whatever the reason, this was going to be brutal.

* * *

Beast Boy flew through the air, pondering his lesson with their leader. The practice was getting him to start thinking about the moves again, trying to relate them to his animal forms and not just his human form. He landed outside a clinic for animals. There were five veterinarians within Jump city and three of them had agreed to a deal with him. They always had animals whose condition they couldn't diagnose. He would switch into an animal form and try to communicate with them. If that helped with the treatment he would later get five dollars. It wasn't big money, but for a job that required so little effort and time it was pretty good. There was a little guilt over taking money for helping, but the extra cash came in handy. And should Terra's memories ever return he would be able to take her places. On dates.

The first few animals were easy. A dog whose owner had switched to a different type of dog food. The animal found it disgusting and only ate when he was really hungry. A cat who had a new neighbour, a dog the woman next door had got as a pet. The sound was something the cat's owner couldn't hear, but the barking was frightening the cat and keeping her from sleeping. A parrot whose owner had decided to become more energy efficient and had installed fluorescent lights. To the bird's eyes the different light was strange. A small dog whose problem wasn't with itself. Its owner had started to smell different and the pet knew death was near. Beast Boy listened and knew what the animal was smelling was cancer. He thought if the owner got treatment they would survive. It hadn't progressed very far, yet.

The final animal was a dog as well, and its story left Beast Boy shaking in a rage. Its owners loved it and made sure it was well taken care of. It had a place inside to sleep each night, and when they left for work in the morning they tied it on with a leash that gave it an entire yard to roam in. It always had a bowl of water and some biscuits. There were places with shade should the sun be too hot, along with shelter from the rain. It was paradise to the small dog. But what the owners didn't know was that when they left for work some neighbourhood kids would wander over with a dog of their own. A huge beast more than twenty times the size of their small house pet. The huge dog was encouraged to chase the smaller one all over the place while the kids laughed. The hunting dog was trained to kill and the smaller dog was used as practice, with the boys letting it be be nearly hunted down before calling off their own pet.

He left the clinic and took to the air once more. He loved being a shapeshifter. All the land and all the ocean and all the air was his to roam in. The thought reminded him of Terra and he automatically calculated how long it would take him to get to the school where she would be. As a White-throated Needletail it would take a mere four minutes. Less if he pumped some of the beast's primal power into the form, making it a bit faster. So close. But he wasn't stupid and knew she wouldn't know him. Whatever spark they'd had when they'd first met was gone, along with her memories. It hurt. As a Peregrine Falcon he raced through the sky. It was perhaps his favorite form since meeting the blond-haired girl who had been a wanderer. That was what 'peregrine' meant, wanderer.

Back at the tower he hunted down Cyborg and convinced him a few video games was better than working. It hadn't been a hard sell. Soon the two of them were joking and roughhousing, accusing each other of cheating every step of the way.

* * *

She stared up at the ceiling. _Ironic, _she thought to herself. _It hadn't been Knowledge following Rage. Rather Rage had been following Knowledge_. It just got weirder and weirder. Closing her eyes she didn't move. The only good thing about the emoticlones being an aspect of herself was that they drew on the same energy. What left her weakened did the same to them. She tried to lift her head, but failed. _Dinner, _she decided, _was much overrated. _She drifted off to sleep.

* * *

He retired to his room for a bit. Cyborg had won three times out of five at a racing game. It had been fun and had helped to relieve a lot of the stress he was feeling. But now it was time for something more serious.

Sitting at the desk he used for school work he pulled a laptop out of a drawer. Opening it he activated a program and an image of Slade appeared. Looking at the image he felt the beast inside roar and he blacked out briefly as he struggled for control. Opening his eyes once more he continued to stare at the picture. It was a simulation programmed with all of the villain's moves and known tricks.

Cyborg had taught him, with some difficulty, how to operate the program. He hit a few buttons and another figure appeared on the display. It was him in his human form. Moving it struck futilely at the villain. Not a single blow landed. Soon he was cut down, leaving Slade triumphant on the virtual battlefield. Hitting more buttons he reset the program and restarted it with him in the form of a great ape. Powerful as it might be, it was soon dead at the feet of the psychotic killer. He grounded his teeth together and tried form after form. A panther, a cougar, an elephant,... Nothing could match the demon that mocked all his efforts to kill it.

Sighing he sat back. No animal form on its own could stand against the deranged monster. That was why he needed to learn how to use his forms in combos. Hitting more keys he placed a falcon above the virtual Slade and watched it race towards the ground. When it was just a few feet above the monster he froze the program and switched the falcon's form to that of an elephant and hit continue. Unbelievably the elephant was sidestepped, though the shockwave did send the demonic killer flying. He stood up a few seconds later. The elephant, being dead, didn't move.

Growling he sat back and stared at the screen. Nothing should have been able to dodge that. Striking from above at that speed the simulated sociopath would have had less than a fortieth of a second to avoid the attack. No human could detect a threat and react that fast. But the simulation was based on what they knew about Slade. Could it be wrong? If it wasn't then what could explain the inhuman speed at which the killer could dodge?

Standing he sought out Cyborg again and talked it over with him. Robin joined them. It took an hour before a possible answer came to them. Cyborg had been trying to upgrade the team's vehicles and had been playing around with a program meant to automatically dive the car. It needed to be able to detect and avoid objects. Looking back over the footage they had of the deranged killer they decided he might have something similar built into his armor. If they were right then it would be nearly impossible to land a blow on the psychopath.

Still Robin had fought him and had managed to land a few hit. But, as the leader himself pointed out, none of those had been able to hurt the man. The system might only come into play with attacks that would cause harm.

Frustrated Beast Boy returned to his room and sat staring at the monster on the display. He looked at the window and saw an image of Terra there. He was a Titan, and Titans were heroes. They didn't kill. To him that was irrelevant. When the chance came he would kill and end Slade forever. If it meant his end as a Titan, then so be it. Even if it cost him his life, then so be it. Every creature had a weakness, and he would find Slade's. He closed the laptop and placed it back in the drawer. Raw power was useless against that demonic creature. But that wasn't the only way to fight.

Turning he went and stood at the window. Looking out he wondered how Raven was doing. He was giving her the space she'd wanted and, other than seeing the breakfast he'd prepared disappearing each morning, there hadn't been a sign of her. Strangely enough, as far as he knew, she wasn't even eating lunch or dinner. With his sense of smell he would have known if she'd been in the kitchen at any time other than breakfast. Perhaps she was eating out. Still it was unusual. Despite the anger he felt he had a desire to check in on her. To make sure she was okay. Totally disappearing like that was weird even for her.

And to think of it, even before that her behavior had been strange. Sure she was sarcastic with him and sometimes used her magic to try and knock some sense into him. But her voice just before the fight with Cinderblock and Billy Numerous had been out of character. It hadn't been her usual neutral tone, but one filled with... He shook his head. He wasn't sure what it had been filled with, but it hadn't been normal for her. It had hurt, and normally her words didn't have that affect. Her responses to his antics was usually way funnier than anything he could come up with and he was pretty sure at those times the emoticlone that she called Happiness was laughing her head off. With his ears he could often hear a tiny trace of the emotions she was trying to suppress. She didn't find him funny, but she couldn't resist the openings he gave her.

Feeling like he was snooping he switched into a bat and listened. There wasn't any sound coming from her room so she wasn't meditating. He would have heard her reciting her mantra if she had been. Frowning, he returned to human form. Something was wrong and he should have noticed it earlier. His own emotions during their last argument hadn't been the most stable. They never were when he went to BENS. That was why he went there. Still there was no excuse. At the time she hadn't even been able to answer her own communicator. He'd been so stupid. Turning he headed towards the kitchen.

* * *

The nap had restored some of her energy. Unfortunately it had also restored the emoticlones' will to fight. Timidity was allying herself with Happiness and the two were about to rip into her. With a trembling hand she lifted the mirror that gave her access to her inner landscape. A knock on the door interrupted her and she looked up. For some reason the emoticlones that had been about to crush her backed off. She wondered why.

"Raven. You in there?"

_He had kept his word for so long, so why was he breaking it now, _she wondered_._ No matter, at least she wasn't being assaulted by those accursed emotions of hers. She rose and answered the door. The smell of pizza made her acutely aware that she'd only eaten breakfast for the last three or four days. She wasn't exactly sure how long it had been.

"I thought you might like something to eat." Beast Boy told her. "You've been cooped up in here for days now."

"I'm fine." She replied, voice void of emotion.

He nodded. "I can see that." His nose wrinkled. Obviously she hadn't taken a shower lately. And her hair was... Well, he needed a better vocabulary to accurately describe that mess. He held out the pizza and heard the sound of her stomach rumbling.

She took the offering and withdrew into her room. He followed and she didn't have the strength to toss him out. Who knew when she would be in the midst of battle again.

"We've been missing you during the movies." He said. It was partly correct. Robin and Cyborg had made no comments, but Starfire was looking a little down. As for himself, he liked the attention he got when he provoked her. Sure it made him immature, but it was still fun.

She made no reply other than to take a slice of pizza and cram it into her mouth.

"So. Obviously you're not okay." He said, looking her over again.

"I'm fine." She mumbled, mouth full.

"Right. That's why you're going to need to shave your head to fix that mess." He replied, pointing at her hair.

"Not important." She started on the second piece of pizza.

"I guess." He shrugged. "Then again you could always keep your hood up to hide it."

"Not important." She mumbled, chewing.

He looked around the room, viewing the destruction. "I just wanted to apologize." The green-skinned Titan finally said.

She looked up at that. "Apologize?" She asked.

"Yeah. For two things really. First is for getting angry with you. It was obvious you weren't yourself when you said I wasn't pulling my weight in a fight." He looked down. "Not sure how true that is but I can try harder."

"When did I say that?" She couldn't remember and wondered if maybe Rage had briefly taken control during the last few days. But then again, some of the things she said was pretty sarcastic and something might have hit a nerve.

He shrugged. "You don't want me to patrol with you anymore. That Cyborg is better. And you said I was going to have to help more than usual back when we fought Cinderblock and Billy Numerous."

She swallowed the pizza in her mouth. "I was struggling to keep my emoticlones under control back then." She answered, hating long speeches. "I needed you to help more because of that."

"Oh."

"And you've been looking down quite a bit recently. I thought you needed a break so that's why I chose Cyborg to patrol with."

"Oh." He said again, feeling relieved. "Not having anything to do just made me feel useless." He explained. "And I've been dreaming about Terra. Which is why I probably looked down."

She considered his words as she searched inside her for any signs of the rebellion. There were none. "What was the second thing?" She asked.

"For breaking my word. It looks like being left alone isn't too good for you." He looked at her hair again and then around at the destruction. "I'll be back in an hour to drag you down for more pizza and a movie. Starfire picked the movie so goodness only knows what we will be watching. You might want to bring a book, just in case."

"I have to meditate..." She started.

"Right. And we can both see how well that's going for you." He replied, with a hint of sarcasm. "You don't even have the energy to throw me out of your room."

"My emoticlones ..." She tried again.

"Are obviously behaving now. Who knows, they're probably just going stir crazy being cooped up in here."

"But ..."

He stood. "I'll tell Starfire you need help with your hair. If anyone can get you back to looking like your usual gorgeous self it's her." He disappeared out the door.

"Don't ..." She started to say, but it was too late as he closed the door.

She picked up the mirror and looked into it, preparing herself for battle. She still had to figure out what was going on. A forest with a yellow sky filled with pink clouds appeared around her. No bolts of energy reached out for her. There was no ambush. What she saw was Happiness rolling on the ground laughing to kill herself. The pink clad emoticlone ignored her and continued to roll around giggling like some idiotic school girl.

"Mind telling me what's going on?" Raven demanded, annoyed at being ignored. _Thought it's better than being attacked, _she noted with relief.

"He called you gorgeous." The emoticlone squealed, rolling into a sitting position, legs crossed.

"What ... Oh that. It was just a figure of speech." She replied.

"No it wasn't." The pink clad girl, replied defiantly.

"He only has eyes for Terra." Raven pointed out.

"True." Happiness said, no longer sounding so happy.

"So why the rebellion?" She demanded.

"Oh that. It's over with now. Don't worry." The pink clad figure stood up. "Right now you should be more focused on fixing that hair of ours. It's a mess." She disappeared into the forest.

"Aren't you going to tell me what it was about." Raven yelled after the girl.

"Nope." Came the reply.

She stood in the tranquil forest wondering how to react. All that and they were just going to call it quits without even giving a reason. She closed her eyes and focused on being calm.

* * *

End of Chapter.


	3. Chapter 3

**I do NOT own Teen Titans**

_Time: A few days later._

* * *

_**Slade,... Doctor Light,... **_

He sat on the floating disc as Raven sent it flying to a small shopping district where there had been several muggings lately. _This, _he thought, _is definitely a pretty nice way to travel._ The city passed below him and for once he watched it with eyes that were nearly human. The people were just people, with no red to show the heat radiating from their bodies. Nor were there any pulses of light to show where magnetic fields existed. He looked at the silent girl who appeared deep in thought. "Anyone manage to get a description of the mugger?" He asked.

"Tall. Uses a knife." Came the apathetic response.

"That narrows it down a lot." He smiled at her.

She ignored the comment and let the disc drop to the ground. For some reason controlling it required less effort since the emoticlone rebellion had ended. It was as if they were in harmony with her. Or perhaps they were just trying to make up for the trouble they'd caused. "Patrol from the air." She ordered.

He nodded and shifted into a golden eagle that launched itself into the sky. Wings beating he rose until he soared a mile above the city. It gave him a good view of the shopping district along with a wide strip of land around it. The buildings were low and he could see practically everything. He patiently soared and watched.

_The good thing about patrolling with Beast Boy_, she thought, _is that no one is going to spot him when he's in the air like that._ It was a definite improvement from Cyborg who insisted on using the T-car. Then again, even without the car he made an imposing figure. She walked for a bit and realized she herself was drawing attention. No mugger was going to do anything with a Titan around. Focusing she formed another disc and took to the air herself.

He watched her approach, puzzled._ Did she see something_, he wondered. Swooping he changed direction and landed on the disc. She remained quiet so he kept the form of an eagle and peered at the ground.

She watch the people walking around below her. Her half-demon heritage gave her superb vision, though she doubted it was as good as that of the eagle by her side. "You know about my emoticlones." She started.

Looking towards her he nodded.

She looked back, wondering just what he could see as an eagle. "Any idea why someone like Timidity would try and rebel? Or how she could fight me?" She knew he was smart when he applied himself, still she didn't expect an answer.

He stretched out his wings and folded them back before reverting to his human form. "Why would you be surprised she can fight you? She is you. Only difference is she's a lot more timid."

"Shouldn't that make her reluctant to fight?"

He shrugged. "Reluctant to fight doesn't mean unable or unwilling. There just needs to be enough motivation. People think rabbits are timid, but they will still bite you." He shifted back into an eagle to watch the ground below.

She thought about his words. "I always kept them suppressed. Other than Rage I didn't know they could be so strong. But you're right. In a way they are me and should be able to fight like me. It's just that they never did before. At least not with such ferocity."

He looked back at her. For the violet-haired girl it was a long speech. His form reverted back to that of a human. "For someone like Timidity to fight she would need a pretty good reason. Something to motivate her. Whatever that could be I don't know." He became an eagle again and turned his gaze towards the ground.

"Something strong enough to not just motivate her but all of them. Even compel them to ally with Rage." She peered at the ground. Things seemed peaceful. "They might be me, but I don't have a single idea what that motivation could be." She added.

He watched the ground. The red-tainted people amongst a multitude of sparkling lights. He shifted back to human and shook his head, rubbing his eyes.

"You okay?" She asked

He nodded. "Just so many lights."

"Lights?" It was still day and there were few lights that she could see.

"In a city practically everything has a magnetic field. There's hundreds of lights. And they aren't constant either. They're flickering on and off. It's confusing." He switched his form back to that of an eagle and resumed looking at the ground.

She looked at him. He could definitely see more than she could. He suddenly went still and pointed with his head. She sent the disc flying towards the ground. Soon they were hovering above two people. One of them held a knife. She sent a small part of her soul flying out to wrap around the knife, rendering it useless. Then she continued to surround the person who had held it in a dark field of magic that wrapped them up tight.

"Easy." Beast Boy said, now in human form.

_Easy, _she mentally agreed. But what she held didn't feel human. It felt like ... She reached for more power and flung it as high as she could.

"Raven!" The green-skinned Titan exclaimed in shock. Then a violent explosion erupted above them.

"One of Slade's robots." Raven said, looking around.

"Close." A figure said, stepping out from a doorway. "I had hoped to end two of the Titans with that."

Raven reached out and used her magic to grab the person who had been mugged and moved them as far away as she could. At the same time she prepared to send the disc they rode flying towards the tower.

"If you flee I will order my robots to go on a killing spree." The figure calmly said. "You will get away, but they will kill thousands before you can stop them."

She stopped the disc from rising any further and watched as around fifty of the robots poured from hiding places around them. It had been a trap.

"I won't ask you to surrender. I just plan on killing you. But when the two of you are both gone, either dead or fleeing, they will choose other targets at random."

Beast Boy shifted into the form an eagle and then back again. "They're all robots." He said. "Even the one speaking."

"Great." She said, without emotion. Trying the communicator she found it didn't work. "Great." She repeated, just as emotionlessly.

The fifty figures below them moved as one and pulled an object out of the satchel each wore around their waist. Fifty grenades were sent flying into the air.

"Great." She repeated again and cloaked the disc in a protective shield. Despite trying to dodge as many of the projectiles as she could the shield still barely held long enough to hold of the attack. She watched at the robotic army pulled out more grenades, giving her no chance to go on the offensive.

Beast Boy slipped off the disc and turned into a gnat. It was a risk, but soon he was safely away from the explosions. He picked one of the robots and landed on it. As soon as his feet touched the metallic creature he turned into an eight ton elephant with his front legs positioned around its neck to keep it from dodging. The robot crumpled to the ground beneath the weight. Immediately he switch back to a gnat as several grenades came flying at him. All passed through the space he'd occupied and exploded harmlessly far away. Satisfaction at the defeated foe mixed with the rage inside him. Images of Slade's body torn to shreds with fang and claw filled his mind before he pushed it to one side. He moved towards the next robot with the imagined taste of the demonic killer's blood still lingering in his mouth.

Being such a small creature had its benefits. The robots seemed unable to spot him and his low mass wouldn't set off the grenades even if one did hit him. Still it was a flimsy creature and could easily be destroyed. He flew towards another robot and briefly switched to an elephant again. As nimble as the metallic creatures were, they couldn't dodge when he was transforming right on top of them, already touching them, front legs around their necks. Slade would be able to, but they couldn't.

She raised another shield only to have more explosions shatter it. The disc she rode was sent through the air in random directions as she tried to dodge as many of the grenades as she could. Luckily this hadn't happened during the rebellion. She would have been dead already. As it was the energies she needed came to her with ease and she raised shield after shield. Watching she saw an elephant appear time and time again out of nowhere to crush the robots.

A grenade hit him as he transformed into a gnat, but as expected it only knocked him away and didn't go off. Picking another target he headed for it and soon another robot was crushed. Briefly he wondered why they weren't set to explode when destroyed. _No rational reason why, _he decided. _Slade is just playing a game._ He chose another target and crushed it. _And those games will stop when he's dead. _A need to rip the demonic killer to pieces filled him, and he took his rage out on the robots._  
_

The rain of grenades stopped but she still couldn't go on the offensive. Beast Boy was down there somewhere and she could hurt him. But then he switched into a great ape and went rampaging through the remaining robots. She acted too, crushing them one by one. Soon the robotic army was gone.

He flew up and landed on the disc once again, taking human form. "Wonder if he was really trying to kill us, or just playing more games?" He said apathetically, looking at the mess below them.

"What were you doing?" She asked, impassively.

"Just travelling to each of them as a gnat and then switching to an elephant." He replied.

"As a gnat? You know how dangerous that was?" She struggled to keep her tone neutral.

"A larger creature would have died almost immediately." He shrugged. "Had to use something too small for them to see."

"We better get back to the tower." She intoned apathetically, and the disc raced into the air. Any one of those explosions could have killed a thousand gnats. Looking at the green-skinned Titan she noticed the darkness in him had increased.

* * *

The cleanup was almost as bad as the fight. Each robot had to be found, checked for booby traps and moved to a truck. When that was done they were taken to an incinerator and destroyed. The ashes were searched for anything that might have survived. Then they went back and combed the area several times. Throughout it all Robin only gave terse commands. The look on his face was that of a person obsessed. Beast Boy understood the obsession. If he had let it show his expression would have mirrored that of their leader. However, while he rarely showed it as a human, he was part beast and knew how to be patient.

Then came the debriefing. Their leader wanted, or rather needed, to know everything that had happened. How the robots had moved and how they had fought. Every word Slade had said and the tone in which it had been said. He made them repeat their description of the fight three times each, asking question after question during the process. It was a grueling interrogation. Luckily it was cut short.

Red lights flashing and alarms shrieking sent them all running, or in some cases flying, to the tower's central room. Cyborg and Robin stood at the consoles and worked.

Finally Robin looked up "It's Doctor. Light." He said with a serious expression. "And he's at the city's power plant." He gulped. "People, please be careful this time." He begged. The city used nuclear power with four cores, each capable of generating in excess of a gigawatt of electricity. It was far more than the city needed but the revenue generated by the sale of the extra power was considerable. Their leader gulped again, looking pale. "Please be really really careful." He said in a voice that was as much a plea as it was a command.

* * *

Fortunately they found the mad Doctor not within the plant itself but outside accessing the power lines.

"The Teen Titans." The villain exclaimed, looking at them. "You're too late. With my suit supercharged I, Doctor Light, am invincible." He pointed and multiple blasts of energy flashed out from his fists at the teens who scattered. Cackling he spoke. "With my virus infecting the plant it will run at full power and light up the night." He pointed into the air and a glowing ball of light erupted upwards.

Beast Boy cringed from the flash of light, his sensitive eyes causing him immense pain. Blind he shifted into a bat and flew at the crazed Doctor who cringed in return, frightened of the creature. A force field rose to protect the villain and the teen Titan bounced off it.

"Not so fast, my green-skinned enemy. Doctor Light shall not be defeated so easily." He pointed and a bubble of light surrounded the shapeshifter. "Feel the power." The mad villain cried. "I, Doctor Light, shall end darkness forever."

Within the bubble Beast Boy switched shape time and time again, trying to find someway to escape. But with his size limited by that of the bubble none of the animals were powerful enough to break it. He growled in frustration and tried more animals. Even an amoeba to see if it could filter its way through the barrier. It failed.

"Your days of villainy are over, Doctor Light. Give up now." Robin demanded, pulling out two birdarangs.

"Why should I, Doctor Light, give up?" The villain asked, turning his attention to the Titan's leader. "Nothing can stop Doctor Light so long as my suit is supercharged with the power of the atom."

The leader dodged as several attempts were made to entrap him within light bubbles. He sent the two birdarangs flying at his opponent, only to see them bounce off the force field. He tried explosive disks and then electric disks. Nothing worked. Charging he struck the field with his bo-staff. As he did so light erupted from the barrier, blinding him even through the protection his mask provided. When he could see again he was in a bubble of light.

Raven focused on the force field and tried to crush it beneath a wave of darkness. "Azarath, Metrion, Zinthos!" She intoned, putting all the power she could into the effort.

"My friend, why do you resist the light?" The villain asked, turning his attention to the levitating Titan.

"I prefer the dark." The girl shot back. "Azarath, Metrion, Zinthos!" She recited again, attempting to penetrate the shield. Failing, she infused her soul with a car and flung it at the barrier. It still held.

Cyborg's sonic cannon lashed against the barrier of light doing nothing.

"Futile." The mad Doctor said. "Do you think your power supply can compete against that." He pointed to the power plant. "I, Doctor Light, can no longer be defeated." He sent a bubble of light at the mechanically inclined Titan, trapping him.

Starbolts rained down on the barrier and the crazed villain looked up. "The power I, Doctor Light, now wield is the same as the power of the stars." He said, and threw several bolts of light back at the orange-skinned Titan.

"Let my friends go." The alien ordered, evading the attack while raining more starbolts at the villain. "Especially my friend who is a boy." She upped her attack and light blazed from her eyes, smashing against the barrier.

"Friend who is a boy?" The villain asked, confused. He looked around. "All the ones I, Doctor Light, have trapped so far are boys." He ignored the attack on his force field, confident it would hold.

"I mean Robin." Starfire replied angrily. She landed and pounded her fists against the barrier. It was a mistake as she was immediately trapped in another bubble of light.

"And that leaves you, my pretty friend." The mad Doctor said, looking up at Raven. A dumpster, coated in black magic, smashed against his force field without any affect.

The half-demon's eyes blazed and she sent forth another bolt of dark energy at the barrier. "Azarath, Metrion, Zinthos!" She intoned. The girl could tell she was getting nowhere, but what else could she do. Sometimes she really hated the light. The rage filled her with power and her attacks began to have some affect on the force field, which glowed with a faint blackness beneath the assault.

The mad Doctor's eyes went wide at this. "Time to show you the true power that I, Doctor Light, now wield." He blasted at the Teem Titan with energy bolts of his own, forcing her to raise a black barrier. It shattered and a bubble of light trapped her. "And I, Doctor Light, am triumphant." He exclaimed.

She sent her power against the sphere of light and covered it with darkness. It vanished. "Sad little man. Light is nothing to Darkness." She impassively intoned, and once more began her assault on the barrier surrounding the surprised villain. "Azarath, Metrion, Zinthos!" She recited, eyes blazing. Darkness rushed out from her attempting to crush the shield which shuddered beneath the attack. Yet it still held.

"You know Raven. That shield doesn't surround him completely."

She paused in her attack and looked around. "What?" She asked, sounding calm despite the rage that flowed through her.

Beast Boy pointed. "He's using the power line to get electricity from the plant. His force field can't pass through that or he loses the power."

"So obvious." She said. Distracted, another bubble of light enveloped her, but she dissolved it easily with her own black magic. She wasn't calm and that meant her power was stronger than normal. _Which leaves the question, _she thought to herself, _just why am I still able to control it so easily. _It was difficult, but it wasn't going on a rampage. Nothing was exploding and she didn't particularly feel like killing anyone. Not even the lunatic below her.

"It is futile to struggle against the power of light. I, Doctor Light, am invincible." The mad villain exclaimed, obviously no longer so sure of himself.

"Light is nothing to Darkness." The woman, shrouded in black power, said in an ominous tone. "Azarath, Metrion, Zinthos!" She recited, and sent a part of her soul into the power line, corrupting it for her own purposes. It was difficult, but some of her energy flowed through it and reached the inside of the shield. She only had enough control to shatter the power line and the pole it connected to. It was sufficient. The blast knocked the mad doctor off his feet and damaged the machinery he was using, including his suit,

"No I, Doctor..." The villain went silent, looking at the sinister form floating in front of him. Soon a shroud of darkness rose to bind him.

* * *

Sitting he closed his eyes and focused. The sound of his humming vibrated throughout his body and eventually peace came. He imagined a field of white with numerous dots of black. There were more of the dark spots than usual, but he paid that no mind. Slowly the darkness that was the raw primal power of the beast drew into a circle and shrank to a small point of intense darkness. Remaining sitting he meditated. So many times he'd poked fun at Raven for doing just that, but that had been before his obsession with Slade. Before his need to kill the demonic creature.

An hour later he sat at his desk and pulled out the laptop. Running the simulation of Slade he tried what he'd done with the robots. Switching from a gnat to an elephant while on top of the killer. The results were what he'd expected. Every bird of the air knew all about gravity and how it worked. It was ingrained in their genes. It would take the elephant a third of a second to fall even half a meter. To someone like Slade that was more than enough time to bend and twist away from the threat. Transforming with his front feet around the villain's neck slowed him down some, but not enough. The demonic creature, called Slade, was just too fast and powerful.

Sighing he ran the simulation again and again. Switching from a gnat to a cougar and swiping. From a gnat to a grizzly and once again taking a swipe. It was useless. The claws meant he was no longer restricted to striking at a speed dictated by gravity, but it still wasn't enough. He reached out to close the laptop but paused, staring at the sleeve of his Doom Patrol uniform. A small grin that none of the other Titan would have thought the jokester capable of briefly crossed his lips. He was so used to using animal forms to fight that he rarely gave thought to what made humans the masters of the animal world. Tools.

Rising, he went to see Robin.

* * *

Levitating above her bed she meditated. "Azarath, Metrion, Zinthos!" She intoned over and over. The battle against Doctor Light had been unusual. She wasn't going to complain, but the rage should have caused her powers to run out of control. Yet, difficult as it had been, they had still acted according to her command. Traces of the violent emotion lingered. "Azarath, Metrion, Zinthos!" She intoned again, and it faded, leaving her floating in a sea of calm. She would have to talk to her emotional aspects about this.

"Hey Raven." A knock came at her door.

Irritated she opened her eyes. After having two major fights in one day she really wanted to meditate. "Go away." She said.

"It's movie time." Beast Boy said through the closed door. "Bring a book. Starfire picked some romance comedy this time. Heck I think even I will just read this time. I think it's rigged the way she always gets to pick the movie."

"We take turns." Raven pointed out. "How can it be rigged?"

"I'll leave figuring that out to smarter people than me. I just know it is." He said through the door, sounding completely reasonable.

The corners of her mouth twitched. Only he would say something so ridiculous.

"So you would rather meditate tonight?" He asked.

"Yes." She replied, voice remaining neutral.

"Okay. I'll bring you up some pizza."

She blinked. Surprised. Since when was he so reasonable. Whatever. Tonight she really did prefer to meditate. "Azarath, Metrion, Zinthos!" She intoned. A few minutes she heard a tiny knock at the door, just loud enough to get her attention.

"The pizza." Beast Boy voice came through the door. "Enjoy."

She got up and opened the door to get the tray. Eating a piece she went back to meditating.

* * *

End of Chapter.

To those who are leaving reviews, thanks.


	4. Chapter 4

**I do NOT own Teen Titans**

_Time: The next day._

* * *

_**Waking,... Breakfast,... Cinderblock,... **_

_The dream passed before his eyes and everything was perfect. The way her golden hair moved as she turned her head, smiling. The way those blue eyes shone with some mystical inner light. To his ears her voice was a perfect song, a melody that spoke to his soul. They ate apple pie and talked. There was no Slade and no attack on his friends. No betrayal. There was just her and him, two friends, sitting together in a diner just beyond the edge of the city. For the first time in his life there was hope, true happiness. _

_After a little while they wandered to a carnival and rode rides until darkness came. They continued to sit together and stare at the stars. A perfect moment. Smiling she leaned forward and they sealed a promise of a future together with a kiss. A simple brushing of the lips. Chaste, pure, perfect. He heard the beating of her heart and knew she was as nervous as he was._

The light, shining brightly through the window, hit his eyes and they opened. He growled at the offending object and, if it had been within his power, would have ripped it from the heavens. That hateful thing that ended his dreams each morning. Pulling the pillow over his eyes, he sought the dream once again. As always, it refused to come. Sighing, he sat up and looked towards the window, imaging her there. He shook his head, trying to clear it of the girl. The vision refused to leave.

Sighing again, he closed his eyes and began to hum. He let the sound vibrate throughout his entire being and eventually, after a long time, he began to felt relaxed. Then, when he felt ready to face the beast, he imagined the whiteness that was his mind filled with the primal power of the creature. Slowly he contained that primal force in a small dot to be harnessed as need dictated.

Standing he abandoned his regular set of exercises and began to switch form. He shifted from one animal to the next, focusing on making the transformations as fast as possible, never remaining in any one shape for more than a fraction of a second. Eventually he tired and wandered into the washroom to take a shower.

* * *

A creature of darkness, she wanted to curse the light that shone through her window. But cursing was usually the result of emotion, and those she had to contain. Removing the pillow from her eyes, she looked around. There was an empty tray that the night before had contained pizza. It was perhaps the most normal looking object in her room. Sitting, she levitated, and began to meditate. "Azarath, Metrion, Zinthos." She intoned.

Her attempt, the night before, to talk to her emoticlones had been futile. Worse than that, actually. Rarely had she ever felt such an overwhelming desire to strangle them. Happiness had totally ignored her questions and had just giggled like a school girl again. Timidity had been nowhere to be found. Knowledge had been stretched out under a tree, with a book turned face down beside her. She had looked Raven with a smile that said, 'I know something you don't,' and had then ignored her. She had seen Rage and that was the most bizarre thing of all. The emoticlone hadn't been scowling. She hadn't even been frowning. Rather there had been a smile, albeit a very slight one, on her lips. That had been enough for her, and she had fled the place. Rage never smiled. Never!

She yawned. After that she'd stayed up way too late meditating. Rubbing her eyes she yawned once again. _Stupid emoticlones, _she muttered to herself. It worried her that Rage had been smiling. Anything that caused the evil side of her to act like that couldn't be good. "Azarath, Metrion, Zinthos." She intoned once more, trying to meditate. Her stomach rumbled and she sighed. _Food first, _she decided, and rose to take a shower.

Nose twitching, she approached the kitchen. She could smell bacon. Her stomach growled and her mouth watered in anticipation. She entered to see Beast Boy still there. That was unusual. He almost always left just seconds before she arrived, leaving behind a plate of food with a cup of herbal tea. Early morning she usually preferred solitude. It gave her a chance to relax and prepare for the day.

"Morning." The shape shifter said, not looking up. The sound of the footstep already told him who it was. He continued to eat his own breakfast.

"Morning." She replied. Seeing a plate at the far end of the table she sat down. It was waffles again this morning, with more bacon. She took a piece and ate it, followed by a sip of tea.

"I'll be out of your way in a few seconds. Was late getting started this morning."

"It's okay." She said without feeling. And it was. She might prefer solitude, but she still felt comfortable sitting like this. Just so long as he didn't make any of those ridiculous jokes of his. Then again, at least that would be in character, which would be a relief given just how strange her emoticlones were acting. She glanced in his direction and saw his uniform had changed. There were now disk shaped objects on the sleeves. Three to each side. "What are those?" She asked.

Raising his arm he looked at the disks. "Just a surprise for someone should we ever meet him again." He smiled.

She studied him out of the corner of her eye. When he'd said those words the darkness within him had spiked. She nearly sighed. Everyone had a trace of darkness in them, but Beast Boy was getting to be as strange as her emoticlones.

"Is the bacon okay?" He asked. "I can't taste it so I can only follow the directions on the package."

"Delicious." She replied. "You give up being anti-meat?" She asked.

"Not really. It still disgusts me." He shrugged and gave an exaggerated shudder. "But it's not like I'm normal. I can live off anything." He added.

"Must be nice." She intoned. She would quickly die without meat. The demon part of her needed it. And she really enjoyed bacon. She nibbled on another piece. _Wonder what he would think of that, _she thought idly to herself. He had seen Rage and, like Cyborg, hadn't blinked an eye. Had learned she was to usher in the apocalypse and, like the rest of the Titans, had just set about stopping it. Not once had any of them given her any strange looks or accused her of anything.

"The emoticlones behaving themselves?"

"I'm not sure what they're doing." She said, not quite as apathetically as she normally did. "For a few days they just attacked me over and over. Now it's like they're all saints. Perfect behavior. Even Rage. As far as I can tell they had no reason for it, and gained nothing."

He chewed on the last of his waffles. "I know one thing they gained." He replied, looking at her.

"What?" It was a demand.

"You speak of them with more respect. You always respected Rage for her power. But now it sounds like even Timidity is someone you take seriously."

"And what does that gain them?" She asked.

He shrugged. "For them, not sure. But in the wild animals have a variety of ways to determine rank."

"If it was rank they wanted then why didn't they just overthrow me?" She took the last piece of bacon and nibbled. "They could have. We're the same person, but together they're more than a match for me."

"A fight isn't always to the death. They're still you and killing isn't a part of their nature." He looked thoughtful. "I doubt even Rage is really a killer."

"You're kidding right?" Her voice no longer apathetic, instead expressing disbelief.

"Think about it. She was being influenced by Trigon when Cyborg and I saw her. That wasn't really her." He paused for a second, thinking. "However, I think she is the part of you that could kill if you needed to." He noticed a tiny frown in her facade. "Which isn't bad." He added. "Just so long as the rest of you keep her in check." He grinned at her. "It's just like you once told me. Having her inside you doesn't make you a killer, or a monster."

She suppressed a snort.

"At least you know how your powers work." He said.

"Don't you know how yours work?" She asked impassively, feeling curious.

"You once said I didn't have a brain. Well, sometimes you're right."

"Sometimes you act like you don't have one." She replied.

"I mean sometimes I _actually_ don't have one." He shrugged. "When I switch into an amoeba I'm just a one celled organism." He explained.

"So?" She intoned.

"So, just where is my brain when I'm an amoeba?" He asked.

_Good question, _she thought to herself. "An amoeba is too small to hold a human mind. Even one as small as yours." She said.

"Ha ha." He replied. "For that matter a lot of animals are too small. Even something like a snake or a rat shouldn't be able to contain my thoughts."

"True." She was curious, though her voice didn't reflect it.

"Then there's my clothes. When I transform they're gone. But when I changed back to my human form they reappear." He grinned at her again. "Now there's something I'm grateful for."

"I bet." She intoned, suppressing a grin.

"There are other things. Like the fact I can change shape at all. Only fragments of animal DNA were spliced into my own. I shouldn't be able to change into any of them since I don't have the whole set of genes they do. For that matter only genes from a few animals were spliced into my own. Not all of them." He shrugged and went quiet, wondering just why he was speaking so much. "Anyway. I will leave you to your breakfast." He stood up.

"Wait." She said. "What's it like being an animal?" Her stomach growled and she looked at the untouched waffles. She cut into one and took a bite, before looking back at Beast Boy.

"Weird." He answered. "Like being in two places as once. I experience things the way an animal would. The same reflexes and the same instincts. Yet at the same time I'm human and can think like one."

"Sounds more like magic than shape shifting." She replied, after chewing and swallowing. "The clothes aren't a part of your body. They aren't composed of your DNA. There's no way they should be able to vanish and reappear like that." She cut off another piece and started to chew, thinking.

"I know." He wanted to ask questions about her, but doubted she would be willing to reciprocate. That was okay.

"Sit there." She ordered, pointing at the chair next to her.

He did so, curious. "Why?" He asked, watching her close her eyes. Now he was nervous. The feeling increased as she began to chant.

"Taz Noz Paz Boz Qiz Doz Sez Coz." She intoned and black energy flowed around her, seeping out to encase the shape shifter.

A cold sensation permeated his body and he gulped. "Yet there was a glow of warmth too. Weird.

"Change into a monkey." She said, without emotion, eyes still closed.

He transformed, the chill caused a weird tingling sensation as he did so.

"Taz Noz Paz Boz Qiz Doz Sez Coz." She intoned again. "Change into a mouse." She said after a short pause.

The boy obeyed, still feeling nervous.

"Taz Noz Paz Boz Qiz Doz Sez Coz." The half-demon intoned once more. "Interesting." She added. "Switch back to your human form."

The mouse disappeared to be replaced by the boy, who still looked nervous.

"Taz Noz Paz Boz Qiz Doz Sez Coz." The violet-haired girl recited one last time before she opened her eyes. The black energy disappeared. "Interesting." She said, without feeling.

"What?" Beast Boy asked, gulping. That had been scary._Yet, _he thought, _also nice._ The sensation had him confused. It had been like being embraced by something ice cold, yet at its center he had sensed warmth. Very weird. He almost missed it.

"When you transform your mind is distinct from the new shape." She explained. "It's as though you're astral projecting and overlapping your mind with that of the animal. I've read about people being able to do that."

"You have?" He focusing his entire attention on her.

She took another bite of the waffles, which were getting cold. She chewed and swallowed, before answering the impatient shape shifter. "Supposedly, very power shaman can take on the form of an animal."

"Oh." He sat back to think.

"I've never met one, so I don't know if it's fact or legend." The violet-haired girl continued. "But, supposedly, they spend decades to train themselves. The more powerful ones eventually gain the power to leave their bodies and possess those of animals." She took another bite, still thinking. "And the really powerful ones," she added, "can actually change into animals."

"And you think that's what I'm doing?"

"Yeah." She intoned. "You can do naturally what takes them decades to learn. And even then they can only do it with difficulty, needing to perform a ceremony." She paused. "Whatever changed you didn't didn't alter your body so you could transform, it just gave you complete access to the part of your brain that shaman learn to use." She ate more of her waffles, lost in thought.

"What was that spell you used?" He asked, curious.

"Just an incantation to help me study you when you changed forms." She kept eating.

"It was weird. Cold, but warm."

"Warm?" She asked, briefly looking startled, before her face took on its usual expression. Her soul was cold, and that was all that he should have felt. The cold, dark, touch of a demon..

He shrugged. "It felt kind of nice. I can't explain it better than that. Warm and cold and nice."

"Strange." She admitted, impassively. "You know, if you can change form, then maybe you can learn a few more shaman tricks."

"Such as?" He looked at her.

She shrugged, giving up her aura of being apathetic for a second. "Don't know. It's just a maybe. I can lend you the books I got." She offered.

"Thanks." He said with feeling. Maybe if he could do more he could give Terra her memories back.

"It does explain something I was wondering about." She said.

"Oh?"

"When you get wounded you keep the wounds, even after you shift into another animal. Technically, if it was purely a physical process, shifting shape should heal any injuries. But it's your astral body that takes the injury, and then carries it over to the next creature you change into."

"Friend Raven, friend Beast Boy. Glorious morning." A very bright, and cheerful, voice exclaimed behind them.

Beast Boy turned to see Starfire. She looked very happy. His nose twitched and he grinned. "Morning Starfire." He said to the woman who smelled a lot like Robin. "What has you up so early?"

"Custom of earth I heard is for person to cook for the one they love." She beamed a smile at them. "I shall cook for friend Robin breakfast."

He glanced at Raven and noticed even she had flinched at the comment. It had been slight, but she had definitely flinched. "Are you sure that's wise?" He asked Starfire. "You're not exactly good yet at cooking earth food."

"Then I shall cook a feast fit for a Tamaran king." She exclaimed, still projecting an aura of pure delight. "I still have some Glorak and some Tagnark left. It will make a glorious feast. Friend Beast Boy and friend Raven, would you like some?" She beamed at them, expecting both to accept the offer.

"I think I will skip the generous offer, Starfire." Beast Boy gulped. "After all, Robin may want seconds, or even thirds."

"True." The lively woman smiled. "On Tamaran my cooking was often praised." She bounced into the air, hitting the ceiling with her head, and bounced back down.

"What about you friend Raven? I'm sure Robin wouldn't mind sharing." The woman beamed at the violet-haired girl.

"I have to meditate." The girl replied, quickly demolishing the rest of the now cold waffles. She levitated and vanished through the door.

Beast Boy watched as Starfire stared after Raven. Her mood seemed to have taken a serious hit by their refusal. "You know Starfire, the umm Glark and Tognak, sounds it might be a bit too fancy for breakfast. Why not just cook a few eggs, along with some toast and bacon?"

"Glorak and Tagnark." The girl corrected him. "But each morning friend Robin has earth food. I want something special."

"If it's cooked by you it will be special." He explained. Grabbing the woman, he pulled her over to the stove. "Since you haven't cooked it before I'll help you." He glanced at the door where Raven had disappeared. For some reason he could never explain, a room seemed less bright when she wasn't in it. She made things interesting. She was fun to tease and he always knew when he was overdoing it from her voice. At times it paid to have sensitive hearing. He turned his attention back to the jubilant woman. "While we're at it we might as well cook enough for Cyborg too." He said. The alien beamed a blinding smile at him.

Raven stared at the door. Why had she talked so much? In those few minutes she'd said more than she usually said during a whole day. But it had been nice, to talk freely with someone. And to sense his aura she had fused a small part of her own soul with it. Why would he have called it both cold and warm. It could only have been cold. And never nice. She shook her head and closed her eyes. "Azarath, Metrion, Zinthos." She recited, pushing all distraction from her mind.

* * *

Lights flashing, and alarm shrieking, brought them all running to the tower's central room. Robin stared at the screen for a few seconds and turned towards them. "Cinderblock and Plasmus have escape from prison. Raven pick someone and handle Cinderblock. The rest of us will handle Plasmus.."

Raven nodded. "Beast Boy." She said without thinking.

Robin blinked. "You sure you wouldn't prefer Starfire?"

"No." She said without feeling, surprised at her own decision. But she remember what the shape shifter had told her a while back. Being left out had made him feel useless. Choosing him now would help alleviate that. Thought since they'd allowed him to fully participate in the patrols he'd cheered up somewhat.

"Okay then." Robin said. "I guess I will need Cyborg anyway. His sonic cannon is our best weapon against Plasmus."

* * *

"Thanks for choosing me." He said, sitting on the disc they rode.

"Can you repeat what you did last time against Cinderblock?" She asked emotionlessly.

"Hrmm." He looked thoughtful.

"What?" She asked.

"I can, but I was sort of out of it then. It was pretty reckless." He explained.

"What did you do?" She asked, showing no sign of her worry.

"I turned into a falcon and dived at him. Then I switched into an elephant just before I hit." He turned and grinned at her. "At that speed the kinetic energy of an elephant is equivalent to twenty-four pounds of TNT. But if I had mis-timed it I would have went splat." He shrugged. "Like I said, I was sort of out of it at the time."

"We're not trying that." She said, stating a fact.

"I'm not in any rush to." He admitted, looking at the ground. "You know, this is a pretty nice way to travel."

Relief flooded her. He was one of the four people in the whole world who accepted her despite what she was. "Any idea on how we can beat him?" She asked.

"Depends. Do you want to play fair, or fight dirty?" He replied.

"Heroes don't fight dirty." She said, suppressing her amusement.

"Oh." He shrugged.

"But I'm half demon." She stated with no feeling. "What's the dirty plan."

"You hit him in the face with a can of paint and blind him. If he can't see, then he'll be that much easier to take down." He looked up at the sky. "You know, that just gave me an idea."

"What's the idea?"

"Can't say." He smiled, looking back towards the ground.

A frown briefly crossed her face and the disc wavered a bit. The darkness in him had spiked during that comment. "Is it another insane method to take down Cinderblock?" She asked.

"Nay. Nothing to do with him." He looked at the city, wondering where Terra was.

They reached the concrete villain, and the shape shifter took to the air with a few last words. "You might not want to fight dirty, but I plan to." He grinned at her.

"What ..." She started to ask, but he was gone. _No wonder I need to do so much meditating with him around, _she thought to herself. She levitated a boulder and dropped it on the villain. It cracked into four pieces, and the confused block of concrete raised it's hand to scratch it's head. _His skull is almost as thick as that idiotic shape shifter's, _she thought.

He took the form of a gull and flew over the villain's head. "Caw, caw, caw." He screeched, drawing the giant's attention. It went to throw something, but the shape shifter did his business and flew off.

She stared in disbelief at the white covering Cinderblock's face. _He didn't, _she thought to herself. _There's no way he did something like that. Oh God,... _Her calm disappeared and she didn't know whether to laugh or what to do. _If Robin finds out about this he'll ... _Flickers of black energy sparked from her fingers and she clenched her teeth. She wasn't going to laugh. She picked up another boulder and dropped it on the head of her opponent, teeth still clenched.

He switched into an elephant and started trying to trip the giant. Even with the villain blind it had mixed results.

She lifted another boulder, keeping a calm expression on her face. _At least I'm not being attacked, _she thought, watching the giant wander around with one hand rubbing its eyes and the other stretched out before it. The dropped rock made no impression on the villain.

He took to the air and landed on the disc. "Blasted thing is nearly indestructible." He complained.

"You know, I would have went with the paint idea. I just figured there wasn't enough time to get some." She intoned, expression perfectly calm.

He shrugged. "Plan B worked anyway." He looked around. "Be right back." The shape shifter took to the air once again. He reach an altitude of half a mile and started to looked around. Spotting a building under construction he headed back to the disc. "Lure him in that direction." He said, pointing. "A few blocks up there's a building with a nice new basement about five or six levels deep. That should hold him."

Nodding, she dropped the disc so they were in front of the giant, and tossed a psychic bolt at it. It stumbled after them. She kept up the barrage, with it blindly following, until it dropped into the hole. The impact knocked it out. Seeing a hose she levitated it and washed the villain's face. There was no way she wanted to explain _that_ to Robin.

* * *

"Azarath, Metrion, Zinthos." She intoned, levitating over her bed. "Azarath, Metrion, Zinthos." A knock on the door interrupted her. Reaching out she opened it with her powers. "It's not movie time yet." She said.

"No." He scratched his head, not quite looking at her. "But you said I could borrow some of your books."

"Right." She stood and searched through one of her bookcases. After a minute of searching she pulled out a medium sized tome. "Be careful with it." She stared at him.

He gulped. "I will." Taking the book he flipped through its pages. "Think any of it will help Terra?" He asked.

"Doubt it." She replied, voice neutral. "And it's only a maybe that you can learn any of the stuff it mentions anyway."

"Oh." He sighed.

"Study the section on astral projection and psychic healing first." She instructed him. "You might be able to learn how to heal wounds when you switch animal forms." She suppressed the desire to shrug. "Of course there's a price for everything and healing is pretty draining."

* * *

End of Chapter.

Thanks to those who review. It certainly helps motivate me.


	5. Chapter 5

**I do NOT own Teen Titans**

_Time: Two weeks later._

* * *

_**Chess,... Breakfast,... The Kiss,...**_

She shook her head in disbelief. Never in a million years would she have thought to see such a sight. It was inconceivable. Not to mention unthinkable and incomprehensible. She would have expected her demonic father to become a paragon of virtue before ... She shook her head again. Before her, sitting on the ground, were Timid and Rage. Was Rage raging? No. Was Timid cringing? No. What they were doing was playing a game of chess. They didn't have much of a chessboard, just lines drawn in the dirt. One would make a move, erasing the symbol for the piece being moved, and then redrawing it at its new location. Sometimes that eliminated another piece.

She sat on the ground, or rather fell, and watched. She shook her head again, trying to clear it of the illusion. It couldn't be real. Right? The players made their moves and, in a trance, she watched. Rage was aggressive, attacking with ruthless abandon. Timid was defensive, blocking each attack with skill. In all the two players, different as night and day, were pretty evenly matched. Rage's attack would take a piece, and then Timid's skillful defense would eliminate the attacker.

She closed her eyes. _Things couldn't get any weirder, could they, _she thought. Of course they did. The game played out with Rage ruthlessly taking Timid's last piece, besides her king, with her last piece. Which just happened to place it beside Timid's king. The game ended with both of them having only their kings left. Neither could come close to the other least they be captured.

"Is this for real?" She asked. Normally she had kept Rage confined, rather than letting her loose in Nevermore with the others. But since the rebellion she had hesitated to start anything with either of her emoticlones. As it was, leaving her free seemed to be working great. Really, really, great.

"Chess is fun." Timid said, cringing only a little as she spoke.

"It is." Rage agreed, sounding only a little demonic.

"Since when do you play?" Raven asked, futilely trying to keep the shock out of her voice.

"Since our little rebellion, as you call it." Knowledge answered. She too had been sitting nearby, watching the game.

"Are either of you going to tell me what that was about?" She demanded.

"No." The three spoke as one.

"Not yet, anyway." Knowledge said. "Eventually we will."

"Why not now?"

"Because you would blow up Titan Tower." Knowledge answered. "And while we don't get out much, we like it there." She smiled.

"Why would I do that?"

"Emotions." Rage answered. She along with Timid were redrawing the board. "If seeing us play chess sent you into a shock, telling you that would cause your head to explode."

"Why are my emotions not so out of control anymore?" She wanted at least one answer.

"We're sharing the effort of keeping them restrained." Knowledge replied. She took Timid's place across from Rage. She grinned. "I never lose." She added.

Rage muttered something about someone being a cheater.

"Sharing?" Raven asked.

"We each radiate what we feel." Knowledge explained. "And you feel those emotions. But now when they start to get out of control we're learning how to help restrain them." She shrugged. "And we can access your demon powers too, remember. Since we're a part of you we can help you channel them. They're just as hard to control, but now it's several of us trying to focus them. Not just you."

"Oh." She said, bewildered. "And how did all this come about?" She asked.

"Can't tell." Rage answered. "Just remember that we're all equally as intelligent, and as powerful, as you." She shrugged, before continuing in her demonic voice. "We also have desires and wants too."

"But you don't need to worry." Knowledge added. "We like this place and we're aligned with you. We are, after all, you." She grinned. "No more questions and no more answers. I do believe that's bacon we smell and that's something we all enjoy."

She stood and stumbled for the forbidden door. This might be the inside of her mind, but it was one weird place. Maybe it wouldn't be too bad to just hand the keys over to someone like Knowledge. Then she could sit back under a tree, and read a book all day long.

* * *

He took the sizzling frying pan off the stove and moved the bacon to a paper towel. His stomach wanted to rebel, and he focused on getting the job done. He'd learned a lot in the last few weeks. Including the little fact that demons needed meat, and that Raven, as a half demon, needed it too. At least she didn't need raw human flesh like some did. Now that would have been too much. He would have plugged his nose with something to avoid the smell, but he was too used to relying on that sense to give it up. Shuddering, he dried the fat from the bacon and moved it to a plate.

For three days he'd tried to make sense of the tome Raven had lent him. Written in a very old dialect of English, it was nearly unreadable, and he had ended up asking her question after question about the strange words. She had been driven nearly insane and had, eventually, just told him to come to her room and touch nothing. So that was what he did each morning. Cook his own breakfast and eat, then take the violet-haired girl her breakfast in her room, where she would eat and lecture him.

Sometimes they both just meditated. That was involved in a lot of what he was trying to learn. Sometimes they just sat and talked. That was weird. But usually, for two hours each morning, she would go through the book and talk him through the exercises that were supposed to help him gain more control over his astral body. He was making progress. Even when not changing into an animal, he could project himself a few feet above his body. It seemed natural since it was what he'd been doing, by instinct, ever since he'd learned how to transform.

Now, each morning, he made a small cut on one finger, and shifted form time and time again, trying to heal the cut by manipulating his astral body. The results were far from good. He'd succeeded twice. The other times Raven had had to heal the cut after they'd finished practicing. Those two times had left him drained. Even when fully learned it would have to be used sparingly.

A knock came on the door, and she reached out, using her demonic powers to open it.

"Morning." Beast Boy said, entering.

"Morning." She replied, without feeling, not taking her eyes from the tray he carried.

He set the tray on her desk, careful not to knock anything over. "So, do I get to be sliced and diced again this morning?"

She held up a huge knife. "Yes." She intoned, a piece of bacon already in her mouth.

He made an exaggerated sigh and took the knife. Using the very sharp blade, he made a tiny cut on his thumb which he wrapped with a rag. Getting blood on the violet-haired girl's possessions was the last thing he wanted.

"Just practice astral projection and try to heal the cut there." She ordered. "It will give you a lot more practice at trying than the brief instant you have transforming."

Sitting on the floor he hummed and meditated. Soon he rose out of his body and hovered three feet above the floor. He listened to the instructions she gave and focused on healing the insignificant pinprick.

She ate the bacon and watched. If she had paused to think about it, she would have realized she was content at times like this. Perhaps a little more. Here at the tower she had people who knew her, and who accepted her, who she could talk to. And now she had someone she could relax around, be comfortable with. It bordered on being happy. The boy floated back into his body and held up his hand, looking proud. She handed him the knife again. "If you're so proud over healing a pinprick." She said, apathetically. "Then try something bigger." The look on his face nearly made her smile.

As she watched he made a slightly larger cut and went back to astral projecting. He would never be able to instantly heal major wounds between shifting. That had been merely a delusion on her part. Nor would he be able to heal others, But over time he would be able to learn how to enter a healing trance like she could. She spoke and explained that too him.

"Sort of figured that out." He said, looking at the hand which was pinprick free again. "The faster I heal something, the more effort it takes. It's like flying. It no trouble get to cruising speed, but really going fast takes a lot more effort. Maximum speed can only be maintained for a short time before I'm exhausted. Like walking I guess." He shrugged. "Can walk forever, but running is harder."

"Right." She agreed impassively. "But at least it will take the strain off me. One less team member to heal. It gets exhausting at times."

He looked at her. "Would never have realized it from the way you act." He said. "But, looking back, I can see you usually disappear after having to heal two or three of us." He shrugged. "I'm tired just from healing something no worse than a papercut twice."

"It gets easier." She replied. "Just work on it." She levitated and began to meditate. He joined her and began to hum. She was unaware of the tiniest hint of a smile on her lips.

* * *

The T-ship moved effortlessly through the water. To it's left Aqualad swam with a school of porpoises around him. Beast Boy, in the form of a shark, swam to the right of the undersea vessel.

"Wonder what Trident wants with computer equipment?" Robin said, leaning forward in one of the the T-ship's chairs.

"What I wonder." Cyborg said. "Is how he can get electronics like that to work in the water?"

"Don't be like Beast Boy, Cyborg." Raven said. "Obviously he'll be using a cave again."

"Oh. Right." The mechanically inclined Titan said.

_Hrmph, _Beast Boy thought to himself. _And here I thought we were starting to get along pretty well._ He still irritated her at times, and she still responded with magic. But he knew when to back off. He pushed the thought aside and focused on his surroundings. The dense water transmitted every sound, letting him hear them speak in the T-ship.

The undersea villain, Trident, had hit several electronic stores in the last few days, and they had finally found his location. To be more precise, Aqualad had. They had grouped together again to take down the ego-crazed maniac.

"Getting close." Aqualad transmitted to them. "Be prepared for anything."

"What he said." Robin added. "Triton is dangerous, and very strong, so stick together."

A little further and they broke out of the water inside a large cavern. Beast Boy changed back to his human form and waited. Aqualad soon joined him, followed by the rest of the team. Together they walked further into the dark chamber. Cyborg provided most of the light, even though they all had flashlights. The shape shifter just took to the air, transforming into a bat.

"Submit and I will let you live as slaves in the perfect world I will create." A voice echoed out of the darkness.

"No deal." Robin cried. "You're going down." He searched for the owner of the voice.

"You only got lucky before, fools. Perfection must, in the end, always triumph." The, mostly green, villain walked out of the darkness.

"And evil shall always lose." Robin cried, sending a birdarang in the villain's direction.

"To perfection, evil and good are meaningless." Trident spoke, effortlessly using his weapon to flip the birdarang to one side.

"I think my sonic cannon will have something to say about that." Cyborg exclaimed, aiming his arm towards the, so-called, ultimate warrior. The blast reached out and slammed into the trident the villain always carried. It rang like a tuning fork and the blast was redirected back at the Titan, who dove out of the way. "What?" He asked, standing back up.

"We of the undersea world know all about sound." The green villain spoke.

"Do you know about starbolts?" The orange-skinned Titan, called Starfire, asked. She rose into the air and sent several towards her foe.

"From my previous encounter with you I do." Trident replied. He lifted his weapon and deflected the attack. "You've had your fun. Now it's my turn." He raised his weapon and slammed the base of it onto the rocky floor. It rang again and a blast of sound reached out from it.

Beast Boy fell from the air, screaming, and transformed back to his human form.

Robin had hid behind his cape and now sent two explosive discs at the villain. They were only halfway to their target when the sound from the trident caused them to explode.

Raven reached out and erected a barrier of dark energy, blocking the sound. Slowly her friends got to their feet. Beast Boy was the last one to stand.

"Seems he's learned a few new tricks." Robin said, rubbing his ears.

The sound faded and Raven's barrier was pierced by the three spikes of a trident. The black field shattered. "Useless to hide, useless to run." The villain said. He strolled forward and took a swing at Beast Boy, who disappeared.

The shape shifter, ears still ringing, shifted into an amoeba. He couldn't fight in this form, but there wasn't anything that could find him either. He was much too small for anyone to see. He waited a few seconds, switched into a t-rex, and charged Trident. The three-pronged weapon the villain carried swiftly moved to intercept him. He reverted to an amoeba once more and then returned to being human several feet from his foe.

"Do you think a beast can stand against someone who's perfect?" The outcast Atlantean demanded, voice full of confidence.

Raven rose into the air and rained black bolts of energy at their foe. Starfire joined her, casting down starbolt after starbolt. It all vanished into a wall of water that rose to surround the mad Atlantean.

"I am Excellence. The Ultimate Warrior. Bow and accept me as your master or die." Trident demanded. He was knocked off his feet as the wall he'd created formed into a wave that struck him down.

"The only thing you're perfect at." Aqualad retorted. "Is being a pain." He turned the wave that had knocked his archenemy off his feet around, and sent it smashing into him again.

"Pathetic." The villain cried, twisting in the water to stand back on his feet. He tapped his trident on the floor of the cave again. Sound blasted out towards his hated enemy, only to meet the resistance of a black barrier.

"Annoying." Raven said apathetically. "Azarath, Metrion, Zinthos." She intoned, and sent a wave of darkness at the infuriated villain.

Moving with immense speed Trident avoided the dark attack, and tapped his weapon on the floor again. This time the sound wave lashed out at Raven. It was met with another black barrier. The outcast Atlantean screamed in rage and stepped forward to ram his trident into the barrier. Several exploding discs, along with a number of starbolts, forced him back from his target.

"Give up." Robin demanded. "You can't win."

"Perfection cannot be defeated." Came the growled reply.

A T-rex appeared out of nowhere, teeth clamped tightly around the villain's trident, claws raking at his chest. Using his amoeba form again, Beast Boy had landed directly on the trident before transforming.

"Beast." Roared the annoyed Atlantean, who pulled on the trident, and lashed out with a foot at the exposed stomach of the dinosaur.

It hurt, but the shape shifter held on and pulled, all the while slashing at the chest of his infuriated enemy. Something gave and he went flying backwards, the trident still in his mouth. He was followed by the raging beast that was the villain, who was striving to reach the weapon again.

Raven reached out and encased her foe in a ball of black energy. It came easily and naturally to her. _It seems the emoticlones are helping, _she thought. She constricted the sphere and let it form around the infuriated outcast. She could feel him struggling against it, and he might have even broken free if not for the emoticlones. As it was she quickly bounded him and left him raging on the floor.

Beast Boy dropped the trident, and switch back to his human form again. "That guy packs a kck." He exclaimed, rubbing his stomach.

"Spread out and find the electronics he stole." Robin instructed.

"I think it's in there." Cyborg replied, pointing at the trident. He picked it up and scanned it. "Yeah. It's all enclosed in metal so water can't get at it, but the electronics are there. It's what he used to manipulate sound with."

Beast Boy sat back, still rubbing his stomach, and watched Aqualad approach Raven.

"Fair maiden." The Atlantean said with a sparkling smile, and a lighthearted tone. "I own you my life. May I repay you?"

Raven startled, stared, her heart beating fast. The gorgeous hero of the sea was so close to her, yet still her emotions, and her powers, were under control. _He's going to kiss me, _she thought, excited.

Beast Boy watched the display apathetically. He noted Starfire staring with jealous at Raven and Aqualad. Robin in the meantime was staring angrily at the orange-skinned Titan. He rubbed his still aching stomach and wondered if Terra would be so awestruck by the man.

_She would, _a voice from the Atlantean echoed in his mind. He shrugged in reply.

_What could it hurt, _Raven thought. _He's the most gorgeous guy I've ever seen. And I can kiss him. Nothing bad will happen. The emoticlones have everything under control. And I'm curious. I never thought I would have a chance to kiss anyone. Let alone someone like him._ She lifted her face, and reached out to touch his shoulder. Immediately she knew something was wrong. Every one of her emoticlones, from Timid to Rage, struck at her with brutally overwhelming force. Blackness poured from her hands and even spewed from her mouth. It rose to surround her and the dark power of a demon enraged lashed out. It struck the wide-eyed hero in front of her with full power, encasing him and throwing him more than fifty feet to impact with the far wall of the cavern. The power chased him as he tried to stand and ripped into him, piercing his very soul. He went white, screaming as he fell unconscious to the ground.

"Raven!" Robin cried in shock. The rest were stuck silent by the display.

The dark energy didn't stop. It continued to pour forth to darken the entire cavern, and the walls shattered. Sharp shards of rock hurled through the air, all seemingly aimed at the unmoving Atlantean, who vanished beneath the onslaught. "Unworthy." A demonic voice roared. The darkness struck forth again, and the debris that covered the fallen Atlantean was cast aside. The motionless form was lifted from the ground and shrouded in blackness. Even unconscious the bleeding figure began to scream, terror filled shrieks that froze the blood of everyone present. Then, satisfied, the dark energy faded from the thrashing form, letting it collapse to the floor where it remained still. The dark-clad form of Raven vanished from the cavern.

Beast Boy gulped. "You know, I think I'm going to be a lot more careful from now on about irritating her." He gulped again. "A lot more." He added, eyes wide.

Robin ran to the collapsed form of Aqualad and began to take an inventory of his injuries. Physically there were numerous, minor slashes, but nothing life threatening. They would have to wait until he woke up to learn more. "Cyborg, trace Raven." He commanded.

"No can do." Came the response. "She left her communicator behind." The Titan pointed at the floor.

They put Aqualad, along with their prisoner, in the T-ship and headed back to the tower. It was three hours before the abused superhero woke up. His face was still pale, and he refused to speak to them about the incident, except to say it wasn't their fault. He staggered to the water, eager to leave before the half demon returned, and vanished as Robin profusely apologized.

"Any word of Raven." Robin asked Cyborg, who was scanning news reports in case she appeared somewhere.

"None." Came the reply.

The phone rang two hours later.

* * *

The darkness overwhelmed her with ease and she stood, watching the fury that was unleashed, unable to move. Then the world around her dissolved and she was somewhere else. Somewhere very cold. She shivered, and tried to call on her magic to help shield her against the wind. It refused to answer her. _You need to cool off those hormones of yours, _a voice echoed in her head. Her emoticlones, she realized, stunned at the brute power they could wield when they acted as one.

She looked around. It was a place she had never been before, still she recognized it. The mountain peaks around fifty kilometers from Jump City. On the top it was freezing cold with the wind swirling around her, causing her to shiver violently. Her magic still refused to answer her. Scared, she started walking. _Have I killed Aqualad, _she wondered. She doubted it, but her emoticlones had not been gentle with him. And what of her powers? Were they gone for good? _That might not be so bad_, she thought. But something told her they weren't. She closed her arms around herself and continued walking. _I think I will start wearing pants, _she thought as her legs were bared to the full force of the wind. Her cloak refused to stay in place, rather whipping about, leaving them exposed. _Warm pants, _she added to herself.

The going was slow, but eventually she found a road and followed it. Coming to a gas station she made a phone call. Sitting, waiting for them to pick her up, she wondered what they would think. Would they hate her now? Fear her? Would she be expelled as a Titan. She felt sick with worry.

* * *

Robin grilled her on the event without mercy. She pleaded guilty, claiming that she'd expected to be able to control her powers even with being kissed. That she'd been wrong, and that she would never try it again.

During the grilling Beast Boy appeared with a blanket that she accepted with gratitude. The chill had permeated her body, and she was still shivering uncontrollably. Starfire floated a careful distance from her and asked, with genuine concern, if she was okay. Cyborg also worried about her.

After the interrogation Robin let her go and she fled to her room. A minute later Beast Boy knocked on the door. He asked again if she was okay, and gave her a plate with several sandwiches, wrapped in plastic, on it. He said he would let her off with movie night for today, but to expect to be dragged down to watch one tomorrow night.

She dig into the sandwiches, starving. They still cared, still accepted her. She wept, and though her powers had return, they remained under control. The emoticlones were at work again. Another knock came on the door and it was Starfire, asking if she wanted to meditate and if she would like company. She pleaded to being too tired and asked if the orange-skinned Titan would like to tomorrow sometime. The answer was a joyful affirmative. If she hadn't been afraid of the consequence she would have hugged the alien.

An hour later the shivering finally stopped. Fearfully, she picked up her mirror, and looked into it. She reappeared in Nevermore.

* * *

"We're sorry." Several voice rang out.

"What happened?" She asked wearily. "I thought you guys were going to help me keep things under control."

"We are, and we will." Knowledge replied. "But ..." She shrugged. "Remember, we're you. Who you kiss, we kiss. And we didn't want to kiss him. He repulses us."

"I did." Raven said. "If you're me, then why didn't you want to? I was curious."

"We were curious too." Knowledge admitted. "But you touched him. What did you feel?"

Raven thought back. She had touched his shoulder as he leaned forward. Being empathic she'd felt what he was feeling. She blinked. "I was just a cute girl to him." She blinked again. "Cute?" She asked.

"What else?" The yellow-clad emoticlone asked.

"I was just a conquest." She added. "Someone to add to his list, and someone to make others jealous with." She looked around. "He didn't care for me at all. At least not that way." She shrugged. "But it would have been just a kiss, and I was curious. What harm would it have done?"

"Probably none." Knowledge admitted. "Like we said, we're sorry. What else did you sense from him?"

"What else?" She wondered, thinking. She frowned. "When he touched me he felt my demon part. He was repulsed." She sighed. "So I don't ever to get to kiss anyone?" She asked. The answer was obvious. She'd known it all her life. Why had she allowed herself to hope.

"You will. And when you do we won't be just a conquest." Knowledge reassured her. "It will have real meaning. Like we said. We're sorry. It probably wouldn't have hurt, and we were curious too. But we, and by we I include you, are worth more than just being some silly hormone driven idiot's conquest. That he didn't truly care for you, for us, infuriated us. That he was repulsed by us ..." She shrugged. "We want _our _first kiss to mean something. And that means someone who accept us as a whole. Not just the part that is you."

"So I will get to kiss someone?" She asked, not believing the answer.

"That and more." Affection reassured her. "I refuse to live without love."

"Who's going to love a half demon?" She asked.

Knowledge shrugged. "You would be surprised. You already have four people who fully accept you. Who care about you. Why would the prospect of love be so difficult to believe in? And when that happens you won't have to be too chaste."

Affection chimed in. "Actually I demand that you _not_ be too chaste."

"Unless the person you kiss accepts us as a whole, we will stop it." Knowledge said. "But we did go overboard this time. We're sorry. Even Rage." She said, looking at the red-clad emoticlone.

"Sorry." Came the demonic voice.

Raven blinked. She really did sound sorry.

* * *

Reappearing in her room she looked in a mirror, a normal one. She touched her lips. _What would a kiss be like_, she wondered. Tired, she still sat on her bed and meditated for an hour before falling asleep. Given her emotional state it was necessary.

* * *

End of Chapter.

Thanks to those who review.

Realized this story was starting to head in the same direction as _Shattered Souls._ It won't though, except in the way most falling in love stories have elements in common. Beast Boy will not suddenly be a technological genius. Even the Slade simulation he uses would be more like a video game that Cyborg had to teach him to use. He will learn a few new tricks while interacting with Raven, but most will not be usable in a fight - like a healing trance. Not something you would use when someone is trying to kill you. He will use one type of item in a fight, but he will need Robin or Cyborg to make them. And those he will only use sparingly.


	6. Chapter 6

**I do NOT own Teen Titans**

_Questions: No, Aqualad did not manage to kiss Raven. She touched his shoulder and her emoticlones found out he was repulsed by her demon heritage. They went berserk, stopping him. Nor will he be interested in repeating the process. He's going to be thinking there are 'other fish in the sea.'_

_Time: A few days later._

* * *

_**The Morning,... Drug Dealer,... Terra,...**_

Things had settled down since her little outburst. When the Titans spoke of it, that was what they called it. A little outburst. Personally she didn't think it was so little. However, since then, things had gone back to normal. Beast Boy still visited her in the mornings, and they did something together: meditate, talk, practice,... Just something. Without the restriction, of having to work within the fraction of a second it took to shift shape, he was doing pretty well at learning how to enter a healing trance. Better than pretty well actually. She and Starfire would meditate in the evenings or, more rarely, visit the mall of shopping, as the alien called it. And at night she would settle down with a good book while the others watched a movie. Only on rare occasions did she watch the show. Perhaps Beast Boy had been right, that choosing the movie was rigged in favor of the orange-skinned alien. She doubted any of the guys were into romance comedies. So then, just why were three out of the five sugary sweet stories of first love, with some humor thrown in? She really hated those.

Her emoticlones were behaving like saints. They played chess, ran around doing whatever they did when she wasn't watching, and helped her keep control of her emotions. When she did start to lose control she could often feel them aiding her, redirecting the dark magic that was her birthright as a half demon. It certainly helped in fighting the villain of the day. She could call on more power without expecting it to run wild..

She still wondered what that kiss would have been like. She had been accepted, but loved? That was something entirely different. But she could see the point of her emoticlones. When she had touched his shoulder, Aqualad, with his own mental abilities, had been able to sense her aura. To see that she was half demon, and had been repulsed. That rejection hurt. Would a first kiss with someone who found her repulsive have been really satisfying? She didn't know enough to say. But there was one thing she was sure of, the Atlantean wouldn't be trying to kiss her again. Her emoticlones had really went all out on him.

She nibbled on bacon, and watched as Beast Boy maintained a half decent healing trance. Reaching out she poked him using her magic. His eyes opened and peered up at her. It seemed he really didn't find the touch of her black magic repulsive. "Enough of that." She said apathetically. "You can practice it now on your own."

"Okay." He sat up. "Thanks for teaching me." He wonder if she would be willing to teach more. If there was even more that he could learn.

"You can astral project pretty well." She said, nibbling on the final piece of bacon, suppressing the desire to stare forlornly at the empty plate. "But I guess that's from doing it so often instinctively. There might be other tricks you can learn." She placed the plate behind her, out of sight.

"Such as?" He asked.

She tossed him the book. "Pick something." She intoned.

He flipped through the pages. "Teleportation?" He asked, surprised, and hopeful.

"Can try it." The violet-haired girl replied, sounding disinterested. She was glad. Given he could now understand the ancient English dialect without her help, she'd expected him to just take the book and flee.

"It would be cool." He said, still sounding surprised such a trick might be possible for him.

"Don't know if you can yet." She pointed out. "When you're a snake, and you transform back to a human, where does your body reform?" She asked.

"Where the head of the snake was." He replied.

"Okay then. To start of, try reforming where the tail is." She watched as a snake replaced the boy. "Of course." She added. "Teleportation is limited by how far you can astral project, and right now, for you, that's around three feet."

* * *

Bright kaleidoscopic lights illuminated the dance floor, cheerful music blasted from the speakers, there was good-natured laughter,... It wasn't her kind of place. Looking around she wondered where Beast Boy had run off to. He was supposed to be her partner on this. Keeping her expression passive, she studied the people. Mostly teenagers who were out for a night of good, clean, fun. Well, most of them were.

Lately schools had noted a twenty-three percent increase in drug use. Cyborg and Robin had spent time on the tower's computer, and had determined this was a key location for distribution. _I wonder if any dealer is going to be stupid enough to sell drugs with two Titans around, _she idly wondered._ Assuming they recognize us. _Her usual outfit had been replaced with a pair of blue jeans, and a very colorful shirt. It felt strange wearing pants. Her violet hair had been dyed black. _And_ j_ust why did Starfire have black hair dye on hand, _she pondered. Looking around she tried to spot Beast Boy again. _Of course, he has to keep hidden, given his green skin, _she muttered to herself. _Still, he could let me know where he is. _She hated this place. Focusing, she calmed her emotions.

"Dance?"

"No." She replied, speaking apathetically. She was getting a lot of offers, and was interested. Well, a bit anyway. But touching another person wasn't wise, and given what had happened to Aqualad, probably dangerous should one of the teens try something. She looked at the boy as he reluctantly turned away. _How am I supposed to find someone if I can't even touch them, _she wondered.

Beast Boy was perched on a ceiling fan, completely hidden from view. It allowed him to observe nearly everything that happened below. Lots of people having lots of fun. _Wonder what it would be like to brings Terra here, _he wondered sadly. Watching, he saw Raven get hit on time and time again. He would have smiled if his form had allowed it.

He closed his eyes for a few seconds. The lights, and all the motion, was giving him an headache. A major one. He'd wondered what form would be best for this, and had decided on a golden eagle. Being a small male he could easily hide. No one was going to look up and wonder what that small green spot was. A bloodhound would have been better but, from experience, he knew large green dogs didn't go over too well with people.

Raven looked up as another guy approached.

"Dance?" He asked, running a hand through his brown hair..

"No." She replied for around the twentieth time. _Just why is every guy hitting on me, _she wondered. Rather than leaving, the guy sat down across from her.

"You here alone?" He asked.

"No." She answered, apathetically. _He looks kind of cute_, she noted. _Wonder if he would mind that I'm half demon_.

"Boyfriend?" The guy asked, looking her over, practically drooling.

_Bleh! _She mentally intoned. _He's looking at me like I'm a piece of meat. _"No. Leave me alone." She said, staring over his shoulder, ignoring him.

"One dance?" He insisted, beaming a bright smile at her, dark brown eyes twinkling.

"No." She said impassively.

"Do you know how to dance?" He asked, resting his chin on his hands, and staring at her with interest.

"No. Get lost." She said.

"I can teach you." The cute guy offered, smiling at her again.

"No." She said apathetically. _Perhaps letting the emoticlones have their way with him wouldn't be such a bad idea, _she though_._ She was getting annoyed. _Did this guy take lessons on being a pain from Beast Boy, _she wondered. By now, with the shape shifter, she would have used her magic to get rid of him. But, at the moment, that was out of the question as it would give away her identify.

"Look." He said, pointing at the dance floor. "All that fun and you're missing out on it."

She looked. It did seem like fun. Too bad her dancing could mean the whole place getting blown to bits. She turned back to the table and lifted her drink, ignoring the boy.

Beast Boy, amused, only half paying attention to Raven, became more alert. Just watching was achieving nothing. For all they knew any drug transactions would take place in the washrooms, or outside. He was the wrong sort of animal. He stretched and turned into a humming bird. Dropping low, he flew between the legs of the crowd to the nearest table. Using it to hide, he switched to a bloodhound, and sniffed the air for a few seconds, before switching back to travel to the next one. No one noticed the huge green dog that appeared under each table for a few seconds. With one table left he headed toward Raven. Shifting into the huge green dog again he knew they'd hit pay dirt.

The brown-haired boy hitting on Raven jumped as the green-skinned Titan appeared, sitting to the girl's left.

"Find anything?" She asked.

He nodded and pointed at guy across from her.

"Who's the green freak?" The guy, smelling of drugs, asked.

"And not a minor amount either." The shape shifter added. "I found several people who had some, but only minor amounts." That guy has a ton." He pointed at the boy again. "Along with over two thousand dollars in cash." He added.

She raised her eyebrows. "How can you tell that?"

"Money has a smell too." He shrugged.

"What are you two talking about?" The drug dealer asked, looking at them nervously.

"So much for our budding relationship." Raven said without feeling, taking a closer look at the guy. _Who would have knew, _she thought.

"I'm out of here." The boy said, rising to leave.

"Not so fast." Raven reached out and bound his legs with dark magic, causing him to sit back down. She pulled out her communicator and called Cyborg. Soon security was sitting on each side of the guy, and the police were on their way.

"Ready to leave?" She asked Beast Boy.

He started to nod, but paused. Among the crowd he'd had a brief glimpse of blonde hair.. "Terra is here." He said. In seconds he was back on the fan, in the form of an eagle. He searched below and spotted her. She must have entered while they were dealing with the drug dealer. _I'll watch for a few seconds, and then leave, _he decided._ What harm can it do?_

The girl, eyes sparkling, was laughing and smiling with two of her friends. The same two who had been with her that day when he'd found she was no longer a stone statue. They weren't alone. He watched in agony as the girl, who possessed his heart, leaned forward and accept a kiss from the guy beside her. She looked ecstatic. He closed his eyes. He'd been so stupid. Of course she would have a boyfriend. And she would be doing things that boyfriends and girlfriends did. For a brief second the world went black, and a burning rage erupted inside him. He wanted to rip that boy to shreds. To become the beast and ... Knowing he was close to losing control, he dropped down and swooped towards the door. It opened as someone entered, and he slipped through, taking to the sky.

Raven turned to watch him, stunned by the emotional outburst she'd felt. Worried she formed a disc and stepped on it.

* * *

"You see Beast Boy?" She asked, entering the tower's control room.

Cyborg looked up. "Nope. Give me a second." He scanned for the boy's communicator. "He's in his room." He finally answered. "Must have entered through the window."

"Oh." Raven said, not knowing what to do. The emotional outburst had been ... She calmed herself.

"Something wrong?" Cyborg asked.

"Mind checking on him?" She asked, trying to sound apathetic.

"What's wrong? I thought you caught one of the dealers and things were going good?"

"He saw Terra there. Then he just rushed out." She explained. "I could sense his emotions even though we weren't touching."

The half cybernetic man nodded. "He's still a bit immature I guess. I'll check on him."

His sensitive hearing picked up the approaching footsteps and he growled, wanting to be left alone.

"Hey, Beast Boy." He heard Cyborg call out, knocking. "Want to play a few video games?"

"Leave." He growled in response.

"Hey man, it's not that bad." Cyborg called through the door.

"Leave, Chrome Dome." The shape shifter replied, still growling.

"No can do man. I can't leave my best friend in the slumps." Cyborg opened the door and stepped inside.

Beast Boy looked up at the intrusion, and felt his control slip. The beast emerged. Not only that, but he accessed the dot that contained its stored primal power and poured it into the transformation. A giant form of the monster appeared and marched on the startled intruder. It roared its rage at the cybernetic man, and opened its jaws, stalking him. Claws sharp as razors, but a lot more powerful, flexed, and raised to strike.

Pale faced, Cyborg backed away. "You know dude." He gulped. "Maybe I ... Uh ... You know I'm sure I ... " He backed out and closed the door. From inside there came another roar, and then nothing.

Raven felt his approach and look up. The man's face was pale, and he was trembling.

"I think he wants to be left alone." Cyborg told the waiting girl.

"What happened?" She asked.

"He changed into the beast." Cyborg explained.

"Oh." Came the simple response.

Inside his room he struggled for control. Within the mind of the beast there were only simple thoughts, primal ones that negated any attempt at higher level thinking. Somehow he fled that mind, calling upon the hundreds of hours he'd spent learning to focus its power, and the time spent learning to control his astral body with Raven. He floated above it, free from the powerful, yet beastial consciousness. He meditated, forming the white space that was his own mind, filled with the black dots that represented the beast's primal power. The dots slowly obeyed his command and formed into a circle that shrank. The beast disappeared, leaving him in his human form. Turning he dropped back onto his bed. Somehow he doubted Cyborg would be back anything soon.

Below they considered what to do.

"The form he's in is a lot larger than what it was last time." The pale faced man said. His hands were still trembling and he shuddered. "And it looked a lot more powerful." He added. "A lot more."

With a rare frown the half demon look up. Focusing, she sent her mind through the walls, seeking Beast Boy's room. "It's okay. He's changed back." She said, relieved.

The cybernetic man sat down, gulping. "I doubt even my sonic cannon would have any affect on that thing." He said.

"If he's got control of it then good. Perhaps we should leave him alone for a bit." She suggested. "And keep a careful watch on him." She added.

Cyborg nodded. "We don't want to risk him changing like that again. Who knows if he'll be able to switch back? The next time he might remain in that beast form." He touched the top of his head and the lower part of his chest. "It's jaws opened that wide." He explained. "It could take off my head in one bite. Plus a little extra." He was still pale. "We better call Robin and make plans, just in case he does change again."

Within her she felt something stir. Her emoticlones were acting up, but not attacking. More like ... She nearly sighed as she considered this new development. "I need to meditate." She said, vanishing out the door, leaving the still shaken Cyborg behind her.

* * *

She entered Nevermore, and saw all her emoticlones waiting. The new feeling had been a summons of sort.

"You're just going to leave him alone?" Happy asked, sounding far from happy.

"What else can I do?" Raven demanded. "He turned into the beast when his best friend tried talking to him. We can't risk that."

"You can't just leave him alone." Knowledge stated.

"What can I do?" Raven asked again.

"He didn't just leave you alone." Timid pointed out.

"No. He made a nuisance of himself." She responded.

"Bull." Knowledge said. "Any time you really wanted to be left alone he did just that. He only made a nuisance of himself when he knew you were lonely, or really didn't want to be alone."

"Oh. And how would he have known to do that?" Raven asked.

"Ears." Rage responded, pointing at her hood where her own ears would be. "Sensitive enough to hear the emotions you were trying to suppress."

"Oh." She should have known that. "Still leave the question, what can I do?" She said.

"We don't know. But we can't just leave him alone in pain. He never did that to you." Knowledge said. "And you've never did it either. The last time he changed into the beast you helped cheer him up."

"I knew what to say then." Raven pointed out. "And I knew it was safe."

"You know." Knowledge said. "Half the reason he makes those jokes, and irritates you, is because he knows you can't resist the openings it gives you."

"He finds us funny." Happy said. "He thinks you're a lot funnier than he is."

"How would you know that?" Raven demanded.

"We watch and listen." Knowledge pointed out. "We're the same, but we each see things from a different perspective. We're thought processes you suppress, but we still exist."

She sighed. "So what do I do?" She asked again. "Tell me and I will do it." Her apathy was gone, replaced with frustration. Of course she would help. She just didn't know how.

"We don't know." Knowledge said.

"But." Rage spoke out. "Change back to your usual outfit before you go see him."

"Why?"

"That might help." Love, who rarely spoke, added. "Though it's a bit underhanded."

"Who cares." Affection said. "If it works, use it."

"Good point." Love admitted.

"Why?" She wearily asked again, listening to her emoticlones speak. "And just what do I do when he changes into the beast again?"

"Run." Timid suggested. "But best to hope that doesn't happen."

"Fight." Bravery said. "But don't hurt him too bad."

"I would say try to reason with him." Knowledge added. "But I really doubt that would work." She shrugged. "Like Timid said, best to hope that doesn't happen."

"Great." Raven muttered sarcastically. "I'm going to face something that turned Cyborg white, and all I can do is hope it doesn't attack me."

"He won't." Rage said. "Sounding sure of herself."

"Oh?" Raven looked at her.

"The beast is primal, but it doesn't hate you. If BB changes into it, just don't provoke it, and it won't attack you." She explained.

"BB?" Raven asked.

Rage shrugged. "It's what we call him."

* * *

She entered the kitchen, wearing her usual outfit. She wondered just how one cooked tofu eggs and bacon. Was it just like normal food, or did you need a different temperature. Shrugging, she went to work.

"What are you doing, friend Raven?" Starfire floated in and asked.

"Cooking Beast Boy dinner, it seems." She replied without feeling.

"Why? We are holding a conference on what to do should our friend change into the beast again. I do hope friend Beast Boy is okay." There was the sound of tears in the sensitive alien's voice.

"He won't attack you even if he does." She replied. "Just don't provoke him. He reversed the change once, lets hope he has it under control."

"How do you know, friend Raven?" The alien asked.

"I don't." She nearly sighed. "But something did set him off, so best to be prepared. The rest of you try and come up with a plan for if he does attack someone, and I will try to talk to him." She looked at the alien. "Just don't do anything to provoke him, _until_ he does attack someone." She ordered.

The alien nodded, and left the room.

* * *

She stood outside his door and knocked.

"Leave." Came the command.

She walked through the obstruction and looked around. She blinked, surprise overcoming her usual apathetic demeanor.

"Leave." Beast Boy was on his feet now, growling the order.

"Your room is clean." She stated, showing her surprise.

"Leave." He ordered again. He felt the beast within stir, but it remained contained.

"I brought you dinner." She held out the plate. "I have no idea how to cook tofu stuff, so it's just breakfast food."

"Not hungry." He sat back on the bed. "Now leave."

She silently sighed in relief as he gave up his aggressive posture. "I'll leave it just in case." She place the plate on his neat, and orderly, desk. _Now, what else to do, _she wondered. "Want to talk?" She asked.

"No. Just leave."

"Where did all the mess go?" She asked, knowing the question was stupid, as she looked around again.

"The beast ate it. Better leave before it gets hungry again."

"Pretty useful, that beast, if can perform a miracle like that." She tossed back.

"It has it uses." He sighed. "Now leave."

She sat down on the floor, resting her back against the bed. "What's love like?" She wondered out loud.

He blinked at the question and sighed. "If it's love then why doesn't she remember me?" He asked.

"Haven't a clue. It's not something I know much about. You saw what happened when Aqualad tried to kiss me."

"Was pretty excessive." He admitted.

"Understatement of the year." She replied. "I collapsed half the cavern."

"I dream about her a lot." He said, looking at the window. "Sometime I can recall her so vividly. And when I see someone with blonde hair, or who talks like her, it feels like I'm being torn apart." He sighed. "Not sure if it's love, but it hurts."

"Sorry." She looked at him.

He shrugged. "Not your fault. And if you're worried about the beast, I can keep it under control. I won't go on a rampage and kill the guy she was kissing."

"That's what you saw?"

"Yeah." He paused. "She looked so happy. I want to hurt him, but that would hurt her. So I can't."

"That's good to know." She admitted. "Though who knows what devious plans Robin and Cyborg are coming up with right now."

The room lapsed into silence. She sat thinking about the blonde-haired girl. It a way they were so similar. She, a half demon, prone to outbursts that hurt people. Terra, with her uncontrolled powers, causing earthquakes and mudslides. Neither of them wanting to cause any harm, yet doing so anyway. But, for all that they'd been different, the people of Azarath had accepted her and tried to help her. Even forgave her for being the cause of their destruction. Terra had been exploited by her family. Had wandered alone, rejected, for who knew how long. Thinking back on it, she found she couldn't blame the girl for accepting Slade's offer. _If things had been just a little different_, she wondered, _would I have ended up like Terra._

* * *

End of Chapter.

Hope there aren't too many typos. I rely heavily upon the proofread button, which doesn't seem to like me today.


	7. Chapter 7

**I do NOT own Teen Titans**

_Time: A week later._

* * *

_**The Morning Begins,... Villains,... Trigon,... Pizza,...**_

The violet-haired girl levitated, and began reciting her mantra. "Azarath, Metrion, Zinthos!" She repeatedly intoned until she felt calm. A knock at the door interrupted her. Reaching out, she infused a part of her soul with it, and opened it.

"Morning." Beast Boy said, entering.

"Morning." She replied, peering at him from the corner of her eye. He looked okay. Three days after he'd seen Terra at the dance hall he'd started leaving his room again, and going about his normal routine. Personally, she though it was his sense of responsibility that had forced him to leave. Doctor Light had broken out of prison, and began robbing banks to fund his next scheme. The shape shifter had been needed, and so had put his personal pain aside to help his friends. It seemed he wasn't as immature as she'd once believed. And the last few weeks of tutoring him in magic had removed any doubts about his intelligence. It was as he'd once said, he had a brain, he just didn't use it much. Though the idea he wasn't immature, or brainless, was still pretty hard to believe when she watched him and Cyborg play video games.

Placing her breakfast on her desk, he sat down and started his own meditating.

While still levitating, she grabbed a piece of bacon, something he always included in her breakfast, and nibbled at it. "Sorry." She said. "Seems teleporting isn't going so well."

"It's okay." He replied. "Was fun trying."

She raised an eyebrow at that. _Did that mean he found it fun to be around her? Or just that he liked pushing himself to accomplish a task, even if he failed it? _She pondered the question and decided it could be either. "Your changes allows you to astral project pretty easy." She explained. "But you can't do something if it requires a large amount of power." She shrugged. "I'm half demon, so tons of power there."

"It's okay." He answered, not opening his eyes. "I can enter a healing trance, which is useful. And it allows me to control the beast."

"How does it do that?" She dared to ask. "She'd spent a lot of time in his room during the three days he'd remained there, but she'd mostly sat and mediated. She hadn't known what to do, and had had to settle for not leaving him alone."

"Its mind is very powerful. I can't think if I'm in it." He explained. "But if I remove my consciousness from it, by astral projecting, I can influence it." Opening one eye, he glanced at her. "Very useful. It means I don't have to be afraid of it anymore."

"Good." She replied, wondering what else they could do. He kept the loneliness at bay. Without something to teach him, he would just leave, and she didn't want that. Nibbling on another strip of bacon she pondered the situation.

He watched her chew and swallow the bacon he'd cooked. _Why am I still doing that, _he wondered. _Terra and I will never be a couple. I will never make a picnic for us._ Sighing, he turned away.

"What's wrong." Raven asked, looking at him.

"Nothing." He hummed, seeking peace.

The violet-haired girl found herself frowning, and started her mantra again. "Azarath, Metrion, Zinthos!" She intoned. A minute later she opened her eyes. "You can still join me in the morning to meditate." She said. "If you want to." She added.

"That would be nice." He replied, not looking at her. "Boring alone. Makes it harder."

"Okay." She gave him a brief smile that he couldn't see. "Azarath, Metrion, Zinthos!" She intoned, relaxation refused to come. Once she'd thought the darkness in him was the beast, but now she knew that was wrong. The beast was a primal creature. Nothing more, nothing less. It was neither good nor evil. So what was causing the darkness? She recited her mantra, but she was still worried. "You know." She said, opening one eye to look at him. "My emoticlones are calling you BB now."

"Cool." The shape shifter exclaimed. He paused. "Wait. It does stand for Beast Boy and not something like Booger Boy?"

"I'm pretty sure it stands for Beast Boy." She said, suppressing a slight smile.

"Cool." He said again.

* * *

Shrieking alarms, and flashing lights, sent them all running to the tower's central room. They found Robin leaning over a console, muttering to himself. To his left was Cyborg, punching keys and trying to help their leader.

"Glorious morning friends. What has brought us here so early?" Starfire asked, sounding cheerful.

"Not sure yet." Robin replied, eyes focused on the screen in front of him.

"It's Gizmo." Cyborg finally exclaimed. "The pint sized nuisance is hacking several dozen bank security systems and sending them fake images."

"They must be breaking into one of them." Robin said, his tone demanding answers.

"Yeah. But I have no idea which one." The cybernetic man replied. "All the alarm systems are going off, and there's video feed at all of them showing the H.I.V.E Five members to be there."

"Narrow it down." Their leader demanded.

"I'm trying." Came the reply. "Ah." He finally said. "They're hitting two different places. I can't tell which of them is hitting which place, but its the East Street Bank and the Crown Rivers Bank."

"Raven." Robin spoke in a commanding tone. "Pick someone and check the East Street Bank. The rest of us will head to the Crown Rivers Bank." He was already running for the garage where his motorcycle was.

"Beast Boy." The violet-haired girl said automatically, turning and racing for the door.

* * *

They found Gizmo and Mammoth leaving the bank. Both were carrying huge sacks of money. Well Mammoth was, Gizmo was having trouble with a bag that was nearly twice his size. They stopped when Raven floated down on a disc.

"If it isn't the witch girl." Gizmo taunted. "I have a few surprises for you today." He held out a device and pointed it at the violet-haired girl. It was ripped from his fingers when a peregrine falcon flashed down from the sky. The pint sized villain was left staring at his empty hand, startled. "Stupid shape shifter." He cried.

Raven send her own powers out in an attempt to bind the tiny genius. To her surprise they met a barrier just a foot from him. She took to the air when Mammoth ran at her. "BB, handle the giant." She shouted.

_BB, _wondered the falcon. Dropping down, he switched to an elephant and charged. Mammoth nimbly slipped to one side, and Beast Boy felt something slam into his skull. He shook his head and changed into a gorilla. Engaging in hand-to-hand combat with the villain he found himself hard pressed to hold his own. Jumping back, he switched to a panther and faced the man.

"Keep that form." Mammoth smiled. "The skin will make a nice trophy

Beast Boy frowned. The villain was easily holding his own. He launched himself at his foe, only to be caught midair and tossed to one side.

"Is that all the little pussy cat got?" The huge man asked, smirking.

Raven called on more of her power. "Azarath, Metrion, Zinthos!" She intoned, and sent her dark magic at Gizmo. The black wave flooded over him and held him. Then it started to fade until there was nothing left of the blackness.

"Poor little witch." Gizmo taunted. "Always the same spells." He laughed. "Nothing technology can't match." He pressed a button on his harness and a ray struck out at the violet-haired girl.

Having no time to dodge, she raised a barrier. It pierced through without effort, nullifying the shield. She pondered what it had been, keeping her shock from her face.

"Wondering what it is?" The genius taunted. "I analyzed your powers and developed an attack it's weak to. You can't touch me, but I can touch you." He pulled out another device, a sphere, and pressed a button on it. "This will be interesting to see." The villain said, mocking her. He dropped it and nothing happened.

She floated on her disc, waiting to see what the sphere would do. Then she fell from the air.

"It creates a field where your powers won't work." The mad genius laughed. "I will be the first one to defeat the Titans.

Standing she tried to call on her powers. Inside they answered, but as soon as they left her body they vanished into some sort of field. _Not good, _she thought to herself. Her foe aimed another device at her, and she dodged, rolling to one side.

Mammoth charged at him and he ran, trying to figure out which animal could beat the super strong villain. He didn't have much that was stronger than an elephant, or faster than a cat. He twisted around, trying to take his opponent by surprise, only to meet a fist that sent him flying. Being a cat, he turned in midair, and landed on his feet. It still hurt though.

"Pretty kitty." The giant taunted. "I just want to play a little."

_Then lets play, _Beast Boy thought. He ran a short distance from the man, and turned around. He raced forward as a cheetah, enhanced by the beast's primal power. He hit seventy miles per hour and launched himself at the man. In midair he changed into an eight ton elephant. An elephant could only run at fifteen miles per hour. But he'd used the form of a cheetah to get to seventy miles per hour. He slammed into his startled foe, sending him flying. He immediately switched back to being a cheetah, and landed on his feet. Turning, he prepared to charge again.

Using her considerable agility, Raven dodged the attacks of the pint sized genius.

"Stay still." Gizmo screamed, throwing a tantrum. "Stay still, stay still, stay still." He yelled, pressing button after button.

Looking at the sphere that was nullifying her powers, she dashed in and grabbed it. A sizzling sound filled the air as she turned and threw it. Immediately dark energy flickered around her body. Her hand was in agony. The object had been hot, and she could smell burning flesh.

"That was stupid." She said. "Leaving it where I could get at it." Furious, she sent her magic at the irritating kid once again. It washed over him, and once more, it faded.

"That sphere was over a thousand degrees." Gizmo said, staring. "That's why I dropped it on the ground. How could you throw it?" He looked into the distance where his toy had disappeared.

Raven looked at her hand. The flesh was badly burned, but she'd only held the sphere for a second. It wasn't anything some time in a healing trance wouldn't fix. She sent another wave of energy at the annoying brat. "Azarath, Metrion, Zinthos!" She intoned, focusing as much power as she could in the attack. She could feel her emoticlones helping her keep the dark magic under control.

He had knocked the giant down several times now, and each time the incredibly powerful man had stood back up. The villain was no longer laughing though. Instead he was livid with rage, and his punches showed it. _Time to change strategy just a little, _Beast Boy thought. As a cheetah he charged again, but rather than an elephant he became a porcupine. Barely missing the enraged giant's fist, he left a trail of quills the whole length of his foe's arm. Landing as a cheetah again, he heard a scream of pain and fury.

Not relenting, he turned and charged once more as a cheetah. At the last second he became an elephant again. The blow that came at him was poorly aimed. Being full of quills it must hurt quite a bit. He impacted with the villain and knocked him down once again. Landing on his feet as a cheetah, he turned and began to repeat the process. Mammoth was incredibly durable for a human, and it took a lot to take him down.

The next time he gave up the elephant trick, and charged as a T-rex. The villain backed off, unable to fight effectively with his primary arm injured.

She levitated a bus and dropped it on the pint sized villain. It bounced off, causing the little brat to laugh at her.

"Your powers can't touch me." He mocked her. "Technology always triumphs."

Getting the message she lifted a car above the boy and let it drop. This time she withdrew her power from it. It struck and went through the brat's barrier with ease. Sparks flew from his harness as he was knocked to the ground. Reaching out with her power again she found no resistance. She bound him tightly, and gagged him as well to silence his tantrum. Looking around she saw Beast Boy had Mammoth backing away. Reaching out she bound him too. He tried to resist, and might have succeeded a few weeks ago, but not now with her emoticlones helping.

"You okay?" Beast Boy asked, looking at her hand.

She nodded. "Nothing a few hours in a trance won't fix." She smiled at him.

He blinked. _Since when does Raven smile, _he wondered. "You sure you're okay?" He asked again.

"I'm sure. It's nothing major." She insisted.

The police picked up the two villain, and they heard the rest of the team had made their own captures. She created a disc and took to the air. He sat beside her as usual.

* * *

"Azarath, Metrion, Zinthos!" She intoned, trying to free herself of emotion. It wasn't going too well. _Why was Beast Boy so full of darkness_, she wondered. Something inside her stirred, sending forth a summons. Frowning, she reached for her mirror and peered into it. Soon she was in Nevermore, amidst a forest with yellow skies. Seeing Knowledge she started to speak. She halted when she noticed all her emoticlones were present. Even Sloth. "What's wrong?" She finally asked.

"What's always wrong." Rage answered, her voice full of fury. "That bastard father of ours."

Raven frowned. "He's in that prison dimension." She replied. "What can he possibly do now?" Worry started to build in her. "He's been defeated. The prophecy is over." She declared in a shaky voice.

"Follow us." Knowledge said. She rose and traced a path through the forest, into the stone maze where Timid had once stayed.

Timid then took the lead, looking nervous. "It's not my fault." She said. "But if it is, I'm sorry." She continued to walk through the maze, keeping her head down.

"It's not your fault." Knowledge said.

"You did good." Rage told the timid emoticlone. "I bet he expected you to run and hide when you saw it. Not come to us."

"Real good." Knowledge said, agreeing with Rage.

Timid whimpered a little, and kept walking.

The half demon didn't like this. Lately Timid had been a lot less timid. But now she was acting like her old self. She was terrified. But then all her emoticlones were. Even Rage.

She followed them, and the maze led to a spot she'd never been to before. Given it was her mind, that should have been impossible. She'd created this place. A sense of evil filled the air, and a fiery heat came from the distance. The land was blasted and ruined. _Not even Rage, _she decided, _would want to live here. _"What's going on?" She asked.

"From what we can tell." Knowledge answered. "Our father is trying to get loose again."

Dread struck her, and she sat on the ground. "How?" She asked, eyes closed, voice without emotion.

"We're guessing that, for some reason, he gets three tries." Rage answered, fuming, eyes blazing. "As if once wasn't enough." She muttered angrily. "The first was when he possessed me. I was the easiest route, since a part of me comes from him. If you hadn't defeated me, he would have corrupted us, and ultimately destroyed you. You would have become the portal, even without needing to go to that blasted temple."

"But he was stopped then." Knowledge added. "And he was given his second chance. To use your energy to create a portal directly to this dimension."

"And as we all know." Rage said, trembling with fury. "He succeeded, even if only for a short time. That was his second chance. He froze time and turned the world to stone. But you returned to fight, driven by the courage of your friends. His reign was stopped almost before it began." She smiled a little. "It felt good to see him get kicked down like that. If only he'd stayed down."

"But you're saying he gets a third try?" Raven asked.

Knowledge nodded. "First through Rage, the one closest to him. Then through a ritual in that dark place. But failing those he can still force a portal open through the last place he's still connected to, you. It's his last chance."

"So the prophecy will still come true." She uttered weakly.

"No. It came true, and it's over with." Knowledge answered. "What happens now isn't driven by any prophecy. Nothing is preordained."

"He's going to get his butt kicked again." Rage firmly stated, her demonic voiced filling the air with fury. "It's been done twice, and it can be done again."

"Right." Raven answered sarcastically. She felt weak and sick. Leaning over, she threw up.

* * *

Frenetically hitting the buttons, Beast Boy saw his car take a hit and go smashing into an obstacle. It had been clever maneuvering on Cyborg's part that had caused the event. "Cheater." He said, giving his best friend a gentle shove.

"Who needs to cheat. When you've got the moves, you've got the moves." The cybernetic man replied, shoving back. "Maybe if you had more brains you would win sometimes."

"Hey I've got a brain. One of the largest ones on the planet, when I'm a whale." The shape shifter exclaimed.

"Sure. Maybe if you played as a fish then you would have a chance, fish boy." Cyborg threw back.

"Whales aren't fish. Chrome Dome." The green-skinned Titan tossed back.

"Friend Beast Boy, friend Cyborg. It's time for the movie." Starfire entered, beaming at them. "Tonight it's another romance story."

"Wasn't it Robin's turn to pick the movie?" The shape shifter asked, feeling sick at the thought of watching another romance.

"It was, and he picked a wonderful story. A cartoon about a princess who falls madly in love with a prince." The alien replied.

"Hrm. And did you by any chance _help_ him pick out this story." He asked.

The alien blushed a deep, pretty, orange. "A little." She admitted, smiling.

"Better drag down your girlfriend, Beast Boy." Cyborg said, "I'm sure she'll love the movie."

The shape shifter frowned, a savage look appearing in his eyes. "What are you talking about?" He asked, growling the words. "Terra isn't here and will never be my girlfriend. She doesn't even remember me." He was poised to attack.

Cyborg gulped. "I meant Raven, dude. The way you two have been spending so much time together." He shrugged. "Don't take it so serious."

"Oh." Beast Boy said, backing off. "If she heard you say that, she would've kicked your sorry behind halfway to Tamaran by now."

"Please, friend Beast Boy, call her down for the movie." Starfire interrupted the two.

"She's not watching tonight's movie, Starfire." The boy answered. "Sorry, but I already talked to her and she said she needs to meditate." He stood up. "And I'm not feeling up to it either actually. I'm just going to grab some pizza for her and then head to my own room."

* * *

A few minutes later he sat cross legged on his bed, chewing on a piece of chunky vegetable, vegetarian supreme pizza. He'd deliver a couple of slices of the meat lover's special to Raven. She'd looked a bit pale, but had claimed she was okay, and that she wished to be alone. His ears told him the wanting to be alone part was true. _Maybe too much strain from healing the team, _he decided. She'd had her own hand to heal, and Cyborg had taken a few hits. He was glad his own wounds had been minor, and easily handled by the trance she'd taught him to use.

He looked at the window. He could still see the image of Terra there. But it wasn't as vivid. When he dreamed, she was still there. But less often, and not in the way she used to be. There was no kiss, with a promise of a future together, anymore. It sadden him, but it was for the best. At least he thought it was. His heart aching, he sat on his bed and meditated, trying to clear his mind. _To think I once used to poke fun at Raven for doing this so much, _he thought, with a slight grin. _And to think Cyborg would say something so insane. He must have a few screws loose._ The shape shifter thought about the violet-haired girl a little bit more. She was certainly interesting. And for some reason he felt comfortable around her. Not quite like the way he'd felt around Terra, but still he was able to relax more with her than he could with the others. He shook his head and started to hum. The image of her smiling came, unbidden, to his mind.

* * *

End of Chapter.

Many thanks to those who read & review.


	8. Chapter 8

**I do NOT own Teen Titans**

_**Trigon's Last Chance,...**_

* * *

_Time: Several hours later._

The violet-haired girl sat meditating, trying to suppress the fear that was threatening to consume her. Around her there was a circle of destruction, all thankfully restricted to her room. "Azarath, Metrion, Zinthos." She intoned, trying to banish the panic. A bookcase fell to the floor, ripped to pieces by a wave of dark energy. Books spilled from it and littered the place. "Azarath, Metrion, Zinthos." She intoned once more. The calmness she sought refused to come, leaving her thoughts in a state of chaos. Now, when she needed it the most, her mantra did nothing to help her.

She clutched her head, feeling the destruction that was being wrought on her body. Trigon was trying to force open a portal to Nevermore, and her body was trying to stop it. There had to be consequences, and it came in the form of an all-consuming pain that rendered her unable to think clearly. "Azarath, Metrion, Zinthos." She intoned again, in a futile hope it would help. It didn't. The pain remained, and her thoughts were still chaotic.

_Do I tell Robin and the others, _she wondered. _But what can they do? Nothing. What hope is there? None. _She moaned, holding her head. _They're all my friends, people who accepted me. And I'm going to kill them. _The thought caused her as much agony as the pain that was nearly ripping her body apart. _Better to let them have their last minutes in peace. Time will stop, and they will become stone. But who knows, maybe, eventually, something will stop my father, and time will return. Nothing is ever truly forever. He had been imprisoned once and perhaps,... If I ask them to help, they will. And then they will die. But if they're stone then in a thousand years, ... Or a million,... Something,... Maybe,..._

She fell to the floor, unable to even remain sitting. Her body was near death, but that wouldn't matter to her father. He could animate the dead, and her corpse would make as good a vessel to him as a living body would. It would reshape at his will, and he would be reborn as the colossal demon he was. The incarnation of evil would be free, and the universe would tremble beneath his rage. Weakly, she turned the mirror she'd been holding, and looked into it.

* * *

In Nevermore she trembled on the ground. Around her, her emoticlones stood or sat, looking pale and weak. Timid was motionless, lying on a crude bed of leaves, broken by her father's onslaught. _Too late, _she realized. _I let fear drive me, and now it's too late. I should have fought as soon as I knew he was opening that blasted portal._

She forced herself to her feet, determined not to give up without at least trying to fight back. Looking around she saw Rage and Bravery standing alongside Love. Happy, Knowledge, Rude, and Sloth were sitting on the ground. All were clearly shaken, but, unlike Timid, they weren't broken. They still resisted the wave of evil that flowed from the portal. Reaching out to them, they all flowed into her, except for Rage. "You're the one closest to him." She explained. "If you come it will help him. He will be able to hurt me through you." Turning, she walked into the fiery heat and vanished through the gateway.

"Idiot." Rage screamed at the girl, who was no longer present, her voice demonic. "Idiot." She yelled again. Turning she knelt beside Timid. "Come on." She begged her fellow emoticlone. "We need you." She took the unmoving figure into her arms. "It wasn't your fault." She said. "No one blames you. And right now we need you. Please." She begged, holding the still form close.

* * *

Stepping through the portal she gagged and fell to her knees. Evil had a smell, and this place was full of it. Looking around, she saw only glowing red rocks and destruction. A place fit for nothing but a demon. She raised her cloak to cover her nose and mouth, trying to breathe, as she forced herself to stand.

"Welcome precious daughter." A voice boomed out above her.

"I'm not your daughter." She screamed, looking up. The being before her stood sixty feet high, with skin that was a cross between orange and red. Horns, small for his size, protruded from his head, and long white hair reached down past his shoulders. His teeth were fang-like, and he possessed talons. His four eyes, that granted him unimaginable power, glowed a bright red. Heat radiated from him, nearly driving her back to her knees.

"Is that any way to speak to your father, my precious portal." The being, called Trigon, smiled down.

"I rejected you as my father." Raven replied.

"That may be as it may be, my precious little girl. But I have not finished with you. You are still my portal."

"I defeated you before, and will do so again." She stared the very incarnation of evil in the eye.

"Perhaps, daddy's little girl should look at herself." Trigon roared, a touch of humor in his demonic voice. "You are not what you were back then."

She cringed, looking at her cloak, already knowing what she would see. It wasn't the white that granted her her full powers. Rather it was a mix of colors, blending and running together. A spot of brown that flowed into a spot of green on the edge. A huge splotch of pink in the center that had orange swirls in it. There were streaks of yellow and purple. She had left coming to face her father too late, had let her fear consume her. She couldn't fully merge with her emoticlones, and Timid, left behind unconscious, wasn't even present.

She called on her powers and they answered. A dark beam launched itself from her hands, aimed for the demon's face. A lifted hand blocked the attack, and fire roared down at her. Lifting on a disc that wasn't quite black, she dodged it, only to run into another blast of fire. She fell from the disc and landed on the ground.

"Soon I shall burn my way through to the place you call Nevermore. Your corpse shall be my new vessel, my portal out of this prison." Trigon said. "When the world is once again stone I shall find all your friends. I shall return time to them and torture them for eternity. That, my precious daughter, is the fate you have brought to those who dared to care about you. Not for them the peace of eternal slumber, but the agony of suffering without end. They shall curse your name for as long as the stars burn in the sky."

"No." She screamed, raising her hands once again. She threw blast after blast of energy at the incarnation of evil. He merely laughed at her attack, enjoying her misery. "Azarath, Metrion, Zinthos." She intoned, striving for more power. The waves of energy she sent at her father battered against a barrier and faded.

"Poor little girl." The demon taunted. "What can you hope to do? Within minutes I shall be free to possess your corpse. To enter the world of mortals, and end them forever."

"Why?" She asked, pouring forth all the power she could. It had no affect.

"Why not, darling daughter?" He asked her. "I have the power to do so. That is reason enough. I will turn all who do not bow down to me to ash. The screams of your friends shall be a warning to any who dare disobey Trigon the Terrible." Lifting a hand he blocked another of her attacks. " Burn my precious portal." He said. "Feel the eternal suffering I shall visit upon those you care about." Red light blazed from his eyes and struck her.

Every cell of her being came alive with pain. "No." She screamed in agony, falling to the ground, struggling to remain sane. She couldn't let her friends feel that sort of pain. Not for a second, let alone eternity. "Azarath, Metrion, Zinthos." She intoned, striving for the power to get to her knees, to continue the fight. "Azarath, Metrion, Zinthos." She recited, forcing herself to stand.

"Impressive, my daughter." Trigon admitted. "I am truly impressed."

She flamed the worry she had for her friends, and let her power run wild. Lifting her hands, she sent all the dark magic she could harness at the hated being before her. It struck him, and knocked him backwards. Once again she let emotion drive her, and called on the power it generated within her. Another bolt of dark energy blasted from her hands, driving her father back another step.

"Impressive, but futile." The amused being said. "Where, dear daughter, do you hope to drive me? I am already in this dimension. The prison I was tricked into so long ago." He peered down at her. "And I am immortal. You can't kill me." He laughed as he was driven back another step. "I can already feel the gateway to Nevermore opening." He told her. "Soon my powers will reduce your body to a corpse and you will die. Then my reign shall begin."

"No." She replied. "It will not." Another bolt of dark magic erupted from her hands to strike the demon. He merely laughed, as he took another step backwards.

"What fun to see you squirm, daughter of mine." Red light poured from his eyes, striking her again. "Scream my precious portal. Scream, and lighten my heart with joy."

She fell to the ground, eyes shut, screaming.

* * *

In his dreams he heard a cry of absolute terror. A scream that froze the blood, and invoked uncontrollable panic. Waking, he looked around, trembling. The sound had only been in his sleep. Or so he hoped. He wouldn't wish that sort of terror on anyone. _Except maybe Slade, _he thought to himself.

Rising, he changed into a bat, and flew around, carefully focusing his hearing on each of the rooms where his friends slept. There was nothing. Sighing, he landed and returned to his human form.

"That was really disturbing." The shape shifter muttered to himself. Doubting he would be able to sleep, he sat and began to hum.

'_Help.' _A demonic voice whispered, and his eyes opened. Frowning, he looked around. It had sounded real, very very real. Yet, there was nothing. "Anyone there?" He called out. There was no response. Switching back into a bat he listened once more. He even flew to the window and listened. Nothing.

He shook his head, puzzled. His ears didn't usually play tricks on him. He sat and returned to meditating. '_Raven.' _The voice spoke. His eyes flickered open again.

Rising, he left his room, and walked to the violet-haired girl's door. "Raven?" He called out, knocking. _If she's okay, I'm going to be in for a world of pain, _he mused to himself. The voice hadn't sounded quite real. As though he wasn't hearing it with his ears. No response came from the room. Sighing, recalling what had happened to Aqualad, he tried her door. It didn't budge.

Returning to his room he sat on his bed. _Just my imagination, _he decided. Yet ... Sighing once again, knowing she would kill him if she found out, he changed into a bat again. Soon he was flying outside her window, listening. He could hear her heart beating, so she was okay. But why was she on the floor? He listened more carefully. Even for someone asleep, the beating of her heart was weak.

Immediately he was inside, back in his human form. "Raven?" He called, seeing her still form on the floor. Kneeling to check on her his eyes saw the mirror she held. He vanished from the room.

* * *

The sensation, as he entered the portal to Raven's mind, was different this time. Before it had just seemed like he was falling, but this time it was as if he was being drawn to something. Below he saw the forest, where Happy usually stayed, pass before his eyes. Soon he was over the indestructible stone labyrinth that was Timid's domain. Within it he saw a place of blasted stone and ruin. That was where he was being drawn. The air grew thicker, making breathing hard, as he fell towards it.

He stood up, gagging from the putrid air. Heat from a black hole in the distance baked his skin. Looking around, he saw an emoticlone he recognized. Rage. He took a step back. He'd seen her when she had been possessed by Trigon, and it hadn't been nice. Seeing Timid beside her he stopped. _Had Rage hurt Timid_, he wondered.

"Help." Rage said, her voice demonic. "Raven is going to die."

"What happened?" Beast Boy asked, keeping a safe distance. Timid, he saw, was clutching Rage's leg. It didn't look like she was terrified of the other emoticlone. That she was afraid of something was obvious.

"Trigon." Rage answered. "He's trying to force open a portal here. Raven went to stop him. But she left me and Timid behind."

"But he was defeated." The shape shifter replied.

"Defeated. Not killed." Rage pointed out, sounding mad. "He's back in his prison dimension. But ..." She sat on the crude bed of leaves beside Timid.

"I'll head for the forbidden door." Beast Boy said. "I'll get the rest of the team, and we will figure something out."

"She's dying." Timid whispered.

"There's no time." Rage added.

"But she beat him before." He gulped. Raven couldn't be dying.

"Before she had me." Rage pointed out. "And Timid too." She looked at the black portal. "She can't win without us. She'll be defeated and die."

"You're her killer instinct." Beast Boy noted.

Rage nodded. "And other things. Some good, some bad."

"I see." He said, swallowing. "Without you she will hesitate in a fight. Stop and think, rather than react."

Rage nodded again. "In a real fight, I'm what gives a person an edge." She looked at Timid. "And without her Raven's barriers are going to be lacking. She plays a role in defense."

"So what do we do?" Beast Boy asked.

Rage looked at him, her demonic voice holding a hint of fear. "She needs us. But when she left Timid was unconscious, and I'm a part of her that she refuses to accept. But without a vessel we can't go through there." She pointed at the portal.

"Why not?" He asked, looking at the gateway. His skin was burning from the heat it radiated. And the air was heavy, filled with something that wasn't a smell, but appeared to the senses to be one. It spoke of pure evil. He shuddered.

"Right now we're inside Raven. That portal." Rage pointed. "Leads to a place outside of Raven. The prison dimension where Trigon is imprisoned. We can't exist there without something to protect us. We would be torn apart. We need you to carry us."

"But if we're inside Raven, and Raven is in that dimension, then you're already in that dimension." He pointed out.

"She's in her room. What went through there was an astral projection. She didn't take us with her." Rage explained.

He shook his head. "So what do we do?" He asked.

"We possess you and you go through there." The emoticlone answered.

He gulped. The emoticlone that terrified Raven wanted to possess him. If he was being tricked things could get bad. Of course if he wasn't then things were already bad. "And how do you possess me?" He asked.

Rage looked stunned. "You will trust us?" She asked.

He nodded.

"Meditate." She said. "Then you need to get close to Raven." Rage paused. "But how to get us into her will be harder. If you're touching her we can flow through the connection. But she will resist that unless she's distracted."

He sat and hummed. Soon the two figures before him vanished, and he felt something enter him. To his surprise, the sensation was pleasant. Terrified, he stood and walked through the portal, straight into the domain of Trigon the Terrible.

* * *

The pain was beyond belief, as if her very soul was being ripped apart. Bit by bit. Still she struggled to her feet. How could she have ever hoped to defeat something that even gods feared. It was hilarious. In her defeated mind she'd forgotten that she'd already beaten Trigon once. She struggled because she knew when she died the world died with her. Including her friends. Her fighting would give them a few more minutes to live. The outcome was never in doubt. Behind her the portal was fully opened. Her demon father could enter it at any time.

"My poor, foolish, daughter." The amused demon spoke. "Why not lie down and let death come."

"Never." She said, struggling to her feet. She called once again to her dark magic, and sent a bolt at the horrifying figure before her. He didn't bother to step away from the attack. A sound behind her caused her to glance backwards. To her surprise Beast Boy was there.

He looked up at the gigantic figure. "You know. I almost wish I'd stayed in bed." He said.

"Shall I play with him, my dear daughter?" Trigon laughed. "Or will you submit? Bow before me, and I might spare his life."

She paused in thought. _Could she save Beast Boy, _she wondered.

"She would have to be a fool to believe that." The shape shifter said. "And Raven is no fool."

"Insect." The giant merely muttered, and sent a bolt of red energy downward.

Something not a part of him stirred, and a black shield rose around him. _Timid, _he realized. The shield shattered and he could almost hear the word 'sorry' coming from the emoticlone. It had given him enough time to react, and he switched into a cheetah. It had the fastest speed of any land animal, and that was what he need to stay alive. He ran, dodging several bolts of energy.

How stupid of her. Of course it was one of her father's lies. As he sent several bolts of energy at Beast Boy, she gathered her own resolve, and sent several back at him. They had no affect. She was too drained, too weary, to fight anymore. She watched as the shape shifter raced around Trigon's attacks. He would soon die. Tears filled her eyes, and she wiped them away. But it was better than the eternal torment that lay in store for the rest of her friends.

The endurance of a cheetah at high speed was around a minute. With the beast to call on he might have two minutes before weariness overtook him. Growling he ran for the demon, hitting seventy miles per hour. If he was to die, he wanted to at least leave a mark on the one who killed him. Inside he felt Rage agree with him. He hit the giant's leg and raced up. The demon's hide was too tough for his claws to penetrate, and he growled in frustration. Then Raged stirred inside him, and black energy oozed from his skin and encased them. Tiny spots of blood appeared where his claws dug in. Driven by the power of the beast, and his immense speed, he raced up the torso of his enemy. Reaching the head he took a swipe at one of the eyes, and saw it start to bleed.

His speed, along with Trigon's sudden return swipe, sent him flying into the air. Timid had raised another shield to protect him from the hit. Though it still hurt, it wasn't the deathblow it should have been. He switched into a White-throated Needletail and swooped to the ground.

Her father was bleeding. _Immortality, _she realized, _didn't mean he couldn't be hurt._ She sent more blasts of energy at him.

His heart racing, he landed beside Raven. The two emoticlones inside were crying out to reunite with her. But how to lower her guard so they could enter? What could startle the stoic girl enough ... _This is going to hurt, _he thought, returning to his human form. He stepped up beside the girl and said, "Raven." Then he turned her around and kissed her. As he stared into the stunned eyes of the violet-haired girl, he felt something flow out through the contact.

When he called her name his voiced was filled with fear. That she could understand, she was afraid too. Then he turned her and kissed her. She was too stunned to react. Rage and Timid flowed into her, and she regained her full power. Rage balanced the fear and she knew how stupid she'd been. Her outfit turned white and her soul entered perfect balance.

He stepped back, wanting to close his eyes for the backlash to come. But Raven had already turned, her white cape flaring a little, to face her father. _Guess she will kill me later, _he thought. _Heck, it might be less painful to just let Trigon deal with me._

"You can leave now." Raven said. "I can deal with him."

"I'll stay, just in case." He said. Either way, he was dead.

"Your call." She raised her hands and a white light burst forth. It struck her demon father in the eyes. She blasted them time and time again, marching forward as he retreated. Something inside her cried in glee, while there was also an urge to caution. It balanced. Turning she created a white disc of energy and flew for the portal, stopping only to grab hold of Beast Boy.

They emerged in Nevermore, where she turned and sent a stream of energy into the gateway. It collapsed. Her father's third attempt had failed. She'd been so stupid, so filled with fear. There had been no need to face him in that place. All she'd needed to do was collapse the portal. But still, it felt satisfying to have hurt him. And this time he'd been hurt. He was immortal, would never die. But that dimension closed off his access to any great amount of power. He'd only had the strength he did while facing her because of the portal. He would be blind for a long long time. Until he was freed, or someone offered him a sacrifice. Since her birth she'd been a source of power for him. That was no longer the case. She was free from him forever..

The White Raven dissolved, her emoticlones returning to their normal form as she released them. She had won. No, she corrected herself. They had won. But she was still near death. "Get out of my mind." She ordered Beast Boy. Then she vanished, entering a healing trance.

"Better leave." Rage said, actually smiling. "She's badly hurt, but will heal."

"And being in that place will have drained you." Knowledge said. "You will need a lot of time to recuperate." She too smiled at him.

He nodded and, switching to the form of a Peregrine Falcon, headed for the forbidden door. In his mind he recalled the violet-haired girl fighting, her strength and determination even when not whole. _Incredible, _he thought.

* * *

End of Chapter.

Thanks to those who read and review.


	9. Chapter 9

**I do NOT own Teen Titans**

_Time: Several days later._

* * *

_**The Talk,... Waking Up,... Doctor Light,... Talking,...**_

Leaving the healing trance, she reentered Nevermore. Weariness tore at her, and she knew it had been a long time. Still, she wanted to check on the emoticlones before she woke up. In the distance she heard them speaking. But, when she entered the clearing, there was absolute silence. _Obviously something I'm not supposed to hear, _she thought with a quiet sigh. Looking around she noticed all eight were present. Knowledge was watching Timid and Rage play another game of chess. The rest were scattered around pretending to be busy. She had the feeling she'd interrupted a meeting of some sort. _One which probably has something to do with me, _she decided with another silent sigh, hoping they weren't too angry at the way she'd messed up the whole Trigon affair.

"Morning." She said.

"So, how was it?" Knowledge asked, looking at her closely, with a hint of a smile.

"How was what?" She replied, confused.

"The kiss, silly." Happiness answered, with a huge grin.

"That." She didn't know what to say. "Well. I understand why he did it. But I'm not sure if I will kill him yet, or maybe just some light torture."

"He did it to save your life." Rage pointed out, her demonic voice sounding angry.

"I know." She answered. "Which is why I'll probably let him live." She looked around. "Of course, given the way you guys acted with Aqualad, he might end up dead anyway."

"Why would we do anything?" Bravery asked, with a puzzled expression.

"You did with Aqualad." Raven pointed out.

"That was different." Knowledge said, giving her a confused look.

"How so?" The girl asked, wondering if she would get a straight answer.

"He was repulsed by you." Rage pointed out. "What did you feel from BB?"

She was quiet for a bit. "Given the situation." She replied. "I can't quite recall." She shrugged. "I was pretty beat at the time."

"But you're going to torture someone for saving your life?" Rage asked with disbelief. "That's pretty brutal, even for me."

"Okay. So maybe I won't." Raven admitted. "But it was my first kiss, and I'm not sure how I will react. You were the guys who said a first kiss should mean something."

"Given it saved our lives, it sure meant something to me." Bravery replied, looking mad. "And the way he charged our father was pretty courageous." She added. A slight smile crossed her lips.

Raven stepped back, realizing she'd gotten _all_ of her emoticlones pretty upset with her. Even Timid was frowning in a way she recalled quite vividly, thinking back to when the supposedly quiet emoticlone had sent her running for her life.

"And he's quite smart." Knowledge said, looking at her with a frown. "If only he applied himself more."

"Plus he doesn't freak out when he sees me." Rage put in, demonic voice sounding a bit less demonic than usual, with a strange smile on her face.

"He's not a neat freak." Sloth added.

"He thinks we're funny." Happy said, peering at Raven with a frown. "Given how sarcastic you are sometimes, I think that's pretty neat."

"He's cares about people." Love spoke out. "And is capable of true commitment." She had a grin on her face.

Raven stepped back. "You have anything to say about him?" She asked Rude.

The emoticlone shrugged. "I don't think he'll mind the occasional burp." She said.

Timid opened her mouth, but closed it again. She clearly wanted to speak.

"I already know what you think of him." Raven said, looking at her. "He's nifty right?"

The emoticlone blushed, and looked down.

"By the way." She said, speaking to all of them with sincerity in her voice. "I'm sorry I nearly got us killed. I should have acted sooner, and not just run off scared."

Knowledge shrugged. "Your father spent a lifetime trying to knock you down. Given that you did pretty well."

"Better than that. You were amazing." Bravery put in. "Even though you messed up by leaving two of us behind, you still refused to quit. I'm impressed." She said.

"So you're not angry with me over it?" Raven asked, with a sigh of relief.

"No." Knowledge said. "But what did you feel when BB kissed you?" Her tone demanded an answer.

_You would never know it, _Raven thought, with a sinking feeling. _But I'm the one who's supposed to be in charge here._ "I know he's not interested in me." She said. "At least not romantically."

"Disagree." Love interrupted. "He was risking his life twice. First just by being in that dimension, and second by daring to kiss you. I doubt it was a valid test to see if he had any romantic feelings for you."

"Point taken." Raven admitted, defeated.

"So, what did you feel from him?" Knowledge asked, tone still insisting on an answer.

She thought back. She'd been so stunned that, combined with being so tired and in pain, she really couldn't recall anything. Then there had been Timid and Rage fusing with her, then the change into what she called White Raven. "I don't know." She finally said. "I thought I was dying, that I had killed my friends and the whole world." She shrugged. "But I get it you all like him?"

"We do." Knowledge admitted. "Even Rage." She said with a twinkle in her eye. "Can you believe that?"

"Not really." Raven admitted. "All I know is my mind is one weird place." She looked around. "So I don't have to be afraid when I see him? There won't be any outbursts that will destroy the tower, and no long walks in the freezing cold?"

"Not from us." Happy said. "Though I bet it will feel weird." She shrugged. "So long as you don't kill him, it will be fun to watch."

"Right." Raven muttered. "Don't I get a say in who I like?" She asked.

"Of course." Knowledge said. "We are you, remember. But at the moment it's eight to one. We got a good sized majority." She grinned impishly.

She sighed, rubbing her head.

"Of course we know you're into Robin." Bravery said. "And while I think he's an okay guy, a lot of us don't think of him that way." She looked around.

"I'm against kissing him." Knowledge said, with no hesitation in her voice.

"Why?" Raven asked. "He's smart."

Knowledge shrugged. "And obsesses over a lot of stuff too. He's smart, but not wise."

"I vote no there too." Timid dared to say.

Raven looked at her. If she had dared to speak, the emoticlone really had to be against kissing Robin.

"Vote no." Rude said.

"Me too." Love said."

"Me as well." Happy said, frowning.

"And I." Sloth added.

"What about you?" Raven asked Rage. "He accepted you and helped defeat Trigon the first time." She hoped at least one of her emoticlone would agree with her.

"I vote no." The emoticlone replied. "He didn't accept me. He just refused to allow evil to win. I think he's okay, but not romantically." She shrugged. "But I can see why you like him."

"So if I were to try and kiss him ..." She paused, and just shook her head. _Did Rage really use the word 'romantically,'_ she pondered.

"We would try to stop it." Knowledge said.

"And if I were to kiss Beast Boy?"

"We would do our best to keep your emotions, and power under control." Happy said.

"What do you recall about that kiss?" She dared to ask.

"Not much." Knowledge admitted with a sigh. "We were in the same state as you. Well, except for Rage and Timid. But all they know is that he expected you to kill him. And that he probably still does."

"He's that afraid of me?" Raven asked.

"Sort of." Knowledge shrugged. "He saw what you did with Aqualad, and he didn't even actually kiss you."

Raven sighed. "I better get back to the real world." She said. "As it is, I don't plan on kissing anyone right now, so we can talk again later. Okay?"

Knowledge nodded. "Meanwhile, we'll just talk about BB and daydream." She smiled, with a dreamy look on her face.

Raven shook her head, not really believing the conversation she'd just had. _On the other hand, _she thought to herself. _They are pretty sure that, eventually, I will be kissing someone. That's good anyway._ She cheered up, still trying to recall the kiss with BB. _And just why am I calling him BB now, _she wondered.

* * *

She awoke, feeling incredibly hungry. It had definitely been a long time. Being nearly ripped apart had done a lot of damage, and it taken a lot of effort and time to heal. She sat up, stretching.

"Friend Raven. You are wake and well." A cheerful voice greeted her.

She looked at the orange-skinned alien. "How long was I asleep for?" She asked Starfire, stomach growling.

"Five days." The alien smiled at her. "We were quite worried. Should I prepare food?" Obviously she'd heard the growling sounds coming from the violet-haired girl's stomach.

"Sur..." She gave it some thought. As famished as she was, she preferred food that didn't walk off her plate and try to eat her instead. "Where are the others?" She asked, looking around. She was in the tower's clinic.

"Friend Robin and friend Cyborg are out patrolling the city." The alien happily answered.

"And BB?" Raven asked.

"BB?" The alien sounded confused. "Oh, you mean friend Beast Boy." She went quiet, as if unsure what to say. "Tell me, friend Raven. Did friend Beast Boy try to hurt you?" The woman looked nervous.

She blinked, sure they'd had a similar conversation sometime in the past. "Why would anyone think he tried to hurt me?" She asked.

"Well." The orange-skinned girl obviously didn't know what to say. "We found him in your room, and it looked like the two of you had had a fight."

"But why would you think he would try to hurt me?" The violet-haired girl asked, confused. They'd definitely had this conversation before. Inside her she felt the emoticlones stir. The alien was hiding something.

"He was lying across you. And the room was destroyed. We had to break down the door, since something had jammed it." The alien said, not looking her in the eye.

"Is he okay?" Raven asked.

"He's fine." Starfire said.

She felt the emoticlones within her relax. "Where is he?"

The alien looked down. "Both friend Cyborg and I disagreed with the idea." She said, looking sad. "But friend Robin insisted he be locked up until you came to."

"Where is he?" She asked again.

"In the secure room downstairs." The alien girl said, not meeting her eye.

The emoticlones moved as one. She felt their irresistible power rise and explode from her body, coating the clinic in darkness. Then there were multiple explosions throughout the room, as equipment and furniture exploded. In places, even the walls shattered.

The orange-skinned alien had leapt back, and formed starbolts in her hands. Her large, dazzlingly beautiful eyes, were wider than normal. "Friend Raven?" She asked, sounding worried.

"He didn't hurt me. He saved me. Again!" She said, trying to control her emotions. The emoticlones were also trying to keep their own under control. It wasn't easy. "So why don't you let him out now." She ordered.

"When friend Robin gets ba..."

Raven stood and let herself pass down through the floor. She was just outside of the secure room, where the team sometimes temporarily kept prisoners. She could see BB in the cell. _Beast Boy, not BB, _she corrected herself.

"Come to kill me?" He asked.

"Kill you..." She was puzzled. Then she recalled the kiss. "Let's both just pretend I was too tired and under too much stress to recall what happened okay?" She told him. "That's the truth anyway. I know it happened, but I can't recall anything beyond that, other than Rage and Timid entering me." She explained.

He nodded. "Anything that lets me keep breathing works for me." He replied, obviously relieved.

She nearly smiled. "How about we get you out of there?" She said.

"Only Robin has the password for the lock." He said. "Cyborg and Starfire kept opening the door."

"I don't need a password." She reached out, and infused her soul with the force field that acted as a door. It was easy. She could feel all of her emoticlones working in harmony with her. She spread her dark energy into it, and into the mechanism that controlled it. The barrier vanished as several small explosions ripped their way through the insides of the walls. "By the way." She added. "Thanks again for saving my life."

"No problem." He grinned at her.

"And remember that little event didn't ever happen." She insisted.

"I wouldn't know what event you're taking about." He faked ignorance.

"Good boy." She said. "Now lets get something to eat. I'm starving."

"Food." He uttered the word like a prayer, drooling.

"Didn't they feed you?" She asked, feeling her emoticlones start to stir again.

"Depends on what you mean by feed. Starfire was in charge of preparing my meals and ..." He went quiet as the alien floated down the stairs.

"Didn't you like my food? Friend Beast Boy." The alien asked, frowning, looking to be on the verge of tears.

Soon they were in the kitchen, preparing a ton of breakfast food. The smell of bacon and eggs filled the air, making her stomach rumble with alarming intensity. The less desirable odor of tofu bacon and eggs mixed with it. They worked together to prepare the waffles. For some reason Starfire was standing back, watching them with a puzzled look on her face. "You okay?" Raven asked her, forgiving her for allowing BB to be put in a cell.

"I'm fine, friend Raven." The girl answered. "But why are you smiling?"

Raven paused, thinking. "I'm hungry, and I'm about to eat." She simply replied, knowing it was more than just that.

The alien nodded, appearing to accept the answer.

* * *

The three of them flew through the air. BB was on the disc with her. Starfire was following, using her own powers of flight. Ironically, it seemed, she had woke up just in time. Robin and Cyborg had encountered Doctor Light again, and the fight hadn't gone well. They'd been captured in light bubbles, while the mad genius was busy powering up his suit from a solar farm just twenty miles outside of Jump City.

"Big." Beast Boy muttered quietly, looking out at the two hundred megawatt solar farm.

"Four square miles." Raven intoned, sounding disinterested. This time, she actually was. She brought the disc down low amidst a dozen huge buildings.

"Hey Raven." Cyborg said, trying to punch his way through a light bubble. "Good to see you're awake."

"Don't damage the buildings." Robin said. "They're full of lead batteries. Over a hundred million pounds of them." He gulped. "It'll be an environmental nightmare if that gets spilled."

"I'll try not to." She replied, sounding as if she didn't care, looking at Doctor Light.

"My day of triumph is near. Soon I, Doctor Light, will light up the night." He cackled.

"Sad little man." Raven said, suppressing a sigh.

"The dark girl." The mad genius exclaimed. "Let me shine some light into your life." He cast several bolts of energy at her.

"No thanks." She replied. She put up a barrier that blocked the attack, looking bored. "Let me get this straight." She started to ask. "You failed with a six gigawatt power supply, so now you're trying it with one that's a mere two hundred megawatts?"

The doctor shrugged. "It was more than enough to handle those two." He replied, pointing at Cyborg and Robin. "And no one had seen you for nearly a week. I thought it was worth a shot."

"Azarath, Metrion, Zinthos." Raven intoned, not caring to talk anymore. Dark shadows rushed out from her, hitting the force field of light surrounding the mad doctor. It withstood the attack, so she upped the power. Despite the aid of her emoticlones some of it ran loose, and she heard something break beside one of the buildings.

"Don't Damage The Buildings!" Robin yelled, panic in his voice.

The light barrier turned a smokey gray and she kept up the attack. "Azarath, Metrion, Zinthos." She recited. A boulder became coated in black, and exploded, sending shards of rock everywhere. The shield started to turn black. "Azarath, Metrion, Zinthos." She intoned once more, sending forth all the power she could. The shield collapsed, just as a dozen solar arrays turned black and started to crack.

She reeled in the power, and focused on Doctor Light. His suit had cracks in it as well, rendering him powerless. She wrapped him in dark energy. A sliver of power reached out and touched Robin, binding him in the same manner. She was pretty sure that that had been deliberately done by the emoticlones.

"Hey." Robin exclaimed.

"That much power is hard to control." She explained apathetically. Reaching out she tried to dissolve the energy binding him. A slight frown crossed her face. She couldn't. It had been formed by all the emoticlones working as one. The dark magic was slightly too strong for her to nullify. "Looks like you're stuck until it wears off." She said, not really caring. "It's too strong for me to break without hurting you."

* * *

"Azarath, Metrion, Zinthos." She intoned, feeling peaceful. Her father had been kicked down once again. That was good. Her emoticlones all agreed one day she wouldn't have to be so chaste. Again, that was good. Of course there was the whole who to be unchaste with deal, but that would work itself out. She wondered just what her other selves saw in BB. _Beast Boy, _she reminded herself. Not that there was anything wrong with him. A slight frown crossed her lips.

Rising, she headed towards his room, knocking she entered.

"What brings you here?" He asked, surprised. Other than when he'd been in the slumps over Terra she never came to his room.

"Just wanted to say sorry for getting you tossed into a cell." She said without feeling.

He shrugged. "I'm pretty sure if I'd explained, Robin would have let me out. I just wasn't sure if you wanted the whole issue with your father brought up again."

"I wouldn't." She admitted. It was bad enough they knew she was half demon, and the daughter of the manifestation of pure evil. It was something she tried to forget about.

"He did the right thing. You know."

"Robin?" She asked.

He nodded. "I was found in your room and you were pretty badly hurt. Locking me up until he knew what had happened was the right thing to do. Especially when I refused to talk." He shrugged. "It wasn't all bad. Cyborg hooked up a game console down there for me." He closed his eyes and shuddered. "But Starfire brought me eight or nine meals a day. She was so sorry, and tried to use food to apologize." He opened his eyes and looked at her. "I had to eat her cooking."

An uncontrollable shudder ran through her body. "Sorry." She whispered, face paler than usual.

"I had to change into a T-rex several times just to finish killing some of the stuff she brought me." He replied.

"Sorry." She said again, suppressing another shudder. "What was it like having Rage and Timid possessing you?" She dared to ask.

"Nice."

"Nice?" She repeated, stunned.

He nodded. "They're both pretty cool." He said.

"Cool?" She asked. "Rage?"

"Well, it's not like either of them tried to take me over and control me. And they're both pretty useful in a fight. I couldn't touch Trigon without Rage doing whatever she did with my claws. And Timid saved me twice when he would have killed me." He shrugged. "In my book, so long as they're on my side, that makes them okay."

"Oh." She said. "So they didn't repulse you?"

"Why would they?" He asked, honestly puzzled. "They seemed pretty nice." He shrugged. "Tell them anytime they need a ride somewhere, I'll volunteer."

She sat back, shocked. Her touch was supposed to repulse people. Not be nice.

* * *

End of Chapter.


	10. Chapter 10

**I do NOT own Teen Titans**

_Remember, there is the darkness Raven senses in Beast Boy. What is it, and how to deal with it?_

_Time: A few days later._

* * *

_**The Dream,... Chess,... Slade,... A Late Night Talk,...**_

Lying back on the bed, he stared at the ceiling, thinking about the dream he'd just had. It awoke in him a sense of sadness that tore at his heart. Terra hadn't been in it. Slowly, over time, she was fading from his thoughts. When he looked at the window now, he only saw her image some of the time. In crowds, he no longer imagined he heard her voice, or saw her hair. At least not as often. Love, he knew, needed to be cherished and nurtured. If it wasn't, then it could fade. She had, for whatever reason, went her own way. He had often tried to figure out why she'd forgotten him, to determine what had went wrong. It was all irrelevant. No matter how much he thought about it, she was still gone.

She hadn't been in the dream. Instead, for some reason, Raven had been. It was easy to understand why he'd dreamed about the violet-haired girl. With the outfit she wore what guy wouldn't? Those legs... But, still, it hadn't been Terra. The smile faded as he focused on the anger, and the all consuming hate.

He recalled the day when Terra had run from them, and into the embrace of Slade. If only he'd run after her, had explained that he hadn't given away her secret. That he hadn't told the others about her lack of control over her powers. If he'd done that, then things might have been different. So he hated himself.

Then there was Robin. He'd figured out right away that he'd uncovered a secret. He could have told that to Terra. Could have shouted it after her. It would have been more believable than if the one she'd believed had deceived her had ran after her. If only he'd done that. So he hated Robin.

And then there was Slade. The one who had corrupted her, and deceived her with his lies. Had turned her against them. He hated Slade too.

With a sigh he continued to stare at the ceiling. So much hate. He could hate himself. That was okay. But Robin was a good person. Someone who always did what was right regardless of the cost. There was no way he could hate him. At least he _tried_ not to. And then there was Slade. He would kill him. Human justice was lacking, and the beast within him had decreed that only the law of the jungle would suffice. That Slade should die. And so it would be.

Sitting at his desk, he pulled out the laptop and ran the Slade simulation. For an hour he tried his shapes in combos, sending them against the hated demon. If Raven had been there she would have seen the darkness in him peak to a frightening level.

Putting away the laptop, he did his morning exercises, and then meditated, confining the power of the beast.

* * *

"Azarath, Metrion, Zinthos." The violet-haired girl intoned several times. One eye opened, peering at the time. He would soon be here. "Azarath, Metrion, Zinthos." She recited again, content to wait. She had thought a lot about the conversation she'd had with her emoticlones. There was one point they had that she couldn't refute. She was more comfortable around BB than anyone else. He'd proven he could stare into her soul, and not flinch. And even before that, she'd enjoyed the time they spent together.

A knocked came at the door, and she reached out with her magic to open it.

"Morning." Beast Boy said, entering. He placed a tray on her desk.

She immediately reached for the bacon. "Morning." She replied, savoring the taste, nose twitching at the smell. She could have swore the strips of fatty meat tasted better when the anti-meat shape shifter cooked them.

He sat down beside her, legs crossed, and started to hum. "So who's winning the chess games lately?" He asked, a second later.

"Timid and Rage always end with a draw. Knowledge wipes the floor with whoever she plays with." Raven answered, chewing. "I gave them a real chess game to play with, but they still use the ground."

"Convenient." Beast Boy replied. "Can play anywhere, at any time. And no need to carry the set around."

"I suppose." She replied, closing her eyes as she chewed.

"When I used to play, that's what we did."

Her eyes popped open. "You used to play chess?"

"When I was small, with my parents." He replied. "On the expeditions there wasn't much room to carry luxuries, so we used the ground to draw the board." He shrugged. "I haven't played since I was around nine or so. It was fun."

"Oh." She chewed, thinking. It was rare for the shape shifter to mention his past. She wondered what he meant by expeditions. "I learned from the priests of Azarath." She said. "They thought learning to focus on the game would help me deal with my emotions."

"Really?" He sounded amused.

"What?" She demanded.

"A game where you hunt down and kill enemy pieces, and then capture their king." He shrugged. "Just strikes me as funny is all. It's not a peaceful game."

"Hrm." She'd never thought of it like that. "Want to play?" She asked.

"Nay. I haven't played since I was nine, so doubt I could remember much." He lied.

"Oh." She replied, wondering why she felt so disappointed. _Maybe because chess is my favorite game_, she decided. _And if I got him hooked on it, it would have meant more time together. But that means I want more time together. Which means maybe the emoticlones are right..._

"Mind if we try teleportation again?" He asked, interrupting her.

The violet-haired girl looked at him. He'd sounded so serious when he'd asked that. "Sure." She replied, glad for something that would keep him visiting each morning. Picking up a fork she started on the waffles.

"Guess I will try being a snake again, and transforming at the tail instead of the head." The shape shifter said, sounding eager to begin.

"Hmm. Yeah." She answered, mouth full. "What did you do with the waffles?" She asked, licking her lips, drooling.

"Bacon bits, ground up, and sprinkled on them." He replied. "I thought you might find it interesting." He grinned at her.

"Hmm. Delicious." She muttered, digging into another bacon flavored waffle.

"Don't you get tired of the taste of bacon?" He wondered, watching.

"No." She replied, trying to slow down and make the delicious treat last.

He grinned at her expression. It definitely wasn't her usual stoical look. For some reason that pleased him. Transforming into a snake, he tried to reform as a human at the tail. He failed. Repeating the process again and again, he tried different types of snake just to break the tediousness of the task.

She watched the process, fascinated. "How many types of snakes can you turn into?" She asked, feeling a little creeped out.

"There are close to three thousand different species." He replied. "I guess I can change into all of them." He glanced at her, and then looked away. "Scares me sometimes." He admitted, voice sounding serious. "Some snakes are so venomous they can kill with a single bite. Often a hundred percent fatal. If I lose my temper, I could kill a person with ease."

"Not too different from me." She commented, quietly, surprised.

He shrugged. "I guess it's like that for all of us. Robin can kill with a single strike of his hand, should he choose too. Starfire can blast a whole building apart if she decided too. Cyborg can lifted a ton. A single hit from him would kill almost anyone."

"Never thought of that." She said.

He stretched out on the floor, eyes closed in thought. "Still, it's different for them, I think." He said.

"How so?" She sat down beside him, curious, wondering what thoughts ran through his head when he was so serious. It was a rare state for him.

"Cyborg is human, even if parts are replaced with machines. The same with Robin. And Starfire has her own people. They know what they are. I don't. What if something in my genes goes wrong? I could become a monster."

She was quiet. That was her own fear. That she would become a monster.

He suddenly sat up. "You know, maybe a game of chess would be fun." His voice sounding normal and carefree again. There was hint of mischievousness in it.

An hour later, in the central room of the tower, she watched as her king was forced into checkmate. She gulped. The boy who claimed he hadn't played since he was nine, had blunted every one of her attempts to attack, had ruthlessly tore apart every defense she'd tried to devise. It had been a slaughter. "Since nine?" She asked.

He shrugged. "Yeah."

She stared at the board.

He grinned at her expression. "I'm not that smart." He explained. "But the pieces to me are just animals, each with their own way of moving. How to attack and defend is built into my DNA."

"Oh." She said, still staring. She reset the pieces, not wanting anyone to see her brutal defeat. If Robin or Cyborg saw this she would never live it down.

Alarms shrieking, light flashing, brought the rest of the team running to the room.

Beast Boy sat back, and watched the violet-haired girl's face as Robin and Cyborg ran in. A second before it had showed emotion. It had been slight, but definitely there. And her tone had been more expressive. Now her face was stoic again, and he expected her voice would be hard to read. Turning, he watched as their leader studied the console.

"Why is it the villains always hit two places at once?" The masked boy asked with a sigh.

"Two jewelry stores." Cyborg said, staring at the display.

"Raven, take someone and check the store on Main Street." Their leader ordered, already running for his motorcycle.

"BB." She simply said, turning to rush to the exit.

* * *

He sat on the disc with her, staring at the store. "Trap." He said.

"Yeah. Something is off." She replied, with a slight frown.

He changed into an eagle and studied the store just twenty feet below. Panic flowed through him. "Slade." He exclaimed, in human form again.

She raised a barrier, not knowing how to react.

"The same game as before." A voice called from below. "Run, and they will kill everyone they see." A hundred robots moved from hiding places. "Any that remain after you're dead will rampage throughout the city."

"Fifty was bad enough." She commented stoically, recalling their last fight with the robotic minions.

"Worse this time." Beast Boy said. "Seems Slade has joined the fight." His tone was strange.

She looked at him, worried. The expression on his face, like his tone, was strange. There wasn't any fear in it at all, just pure hate. Within him there blazed pure darkness. She gulped.

"Handle the robots." He said, slipping off the disc. He disappeared from sight a second later.

"Great." She muttered to herself, swallowing. She focused more energy into her barrier as a barrage of grenades came at her. _Hope he's out of range of those explosions, _she thought, worried. She felt her emoticlones aiding her, reinforcing the shield, and to her amazement it held. "Azarath, Metrion, Zinthos!" She intoned. Thought she wasn't able to change into White Raven, she felt all her different selves start to act in harmony, with a single purpose. Destroy the robots, ensure their friend's safety. Reaching down as one, they infused their soul with two of the minions, and savagely crushed them. Then they reinforced the barrier for the next fusillade of grenades. Cracks appeared in the shield, but again it remained in one piece.

Reaching down they crushed two more. Their power ran wild and encased another, causing it to explode. _That, _she decided, _was a pretty good way for their dark magic to act._ Then they were forced to raise another barrier, as once again a barrage of grenades came at them.

He headed for the one figure he knew to be Slade. The infrared it emitted was different from the others. It showed a living form beneath the armor. The villain raised a weapon, and he knew the robots were only part of the trap. Something to keep them busy. He hovered several feet from the being he had sworn to kill, and shifted into a spitting cobra. He spat venom at his foe's eyes, and shifted into the form of a giant ape before he could fall to the ground.

The venom hit the arm the psychotic killer raised, doing no harm. But it did cause him to lower his weapon. "So. It's the broken-hearted little boy." The demon taunted. "Come to cry?"

"I'm a beast. Not a boy." The shape shifter replied, switching to human form. "When there's something to be killed, we don't cry." He grinned. "We just rip it to pieces."

"Big words." The psychopath sounded amused.

"Words are meaningless." He admitted, and charged, holding two small discs in his hands. He vanished into the form of an amoeba before getting into fighting range. As his hated foe closed the distance it brought him within his reach. He reverted to his human form, his hands reached out, touching the demon. Immediately, he switched back to an amoeba, letting himself fall to the ground. Above him two explosions marked the two spots where he'd touched Slade.

He switched into a gnat, and flew some distance from his enemy. Changing back into human form, he took two more of Robin's explosive discs into his hands. None of his animal forms could touch the demon, but what did an animal care about the way it fought? As an amoeba he could get within striking range. With the discs he had a weapon that could hurt. That was all that mattered. He charged his foe again, waiting for the last second before he changed to his amoeba form. Once again they touched, and once more he changed to being human just long enough to leave the two discs behind. Two more explosions rocked the villain.

Shifting back to human form, he looked to see what damage he'd done. It was depressingly little. Still, the armor of the villain was bent in places, and obviously some of the electronic devices the mad man used were no longer working. There were exposed wires in places.

"What sort of animal uses weapons?" The psychopath asked, sounding calm.

"A smart one." He replied, voice overflowing with hate, charging again.

He struck again and again, attacking in a way that his foe couldn't counter. Each time two explosions marked the two spots he'd struck at. He had only to switch shape twice, and his transformations were instantaneous, done at the speed of thought. When his foe stopped meeting his charges, he used the wind to carry him into striking range. Still the demon didn't die, nor did he flee. And soon he had only two discs left.

"You're out of toys." The psychotic monster taunted. His armor was wrecked in places, but it still covered him. Exposed wiring showed in dozens of spots, but obviously some of it still worked. It spoke again. "When you've used the last of your toys, I will kill her." He pointed at Raven, who was still sitting on her black disc, fighting some distance away.

Beast Boy frowned, thinking, concern for his friend momentarily subduing the hate. There was only one weapon the villain had that could touch the violet-haired girl while she was in the air. He changed into a cheetah, and raced for the weapon the psychotic monster had dropped. Grabbing it in his teeth, he turned, and switched to human form, pointing it at Slade. The demon dodged as the beam cut through the air, striking a bus behind him. The vehicle exploded, a fireball rising twenty or more meters into the sky.

Shooting at a distance was useless. But he didn't have too. He charged his hated foe once more. The discs might not have done much, but this would. Slade turned and ran, vanishing before his eyes. Stopping, he let out a scream of pure rage, as his prey escaped.

Explosions, not from the grenades, came from the distance, and she worried. _The idiot, _she thought, _trying to fight Slade alone. _Still the explosions didn't cease, so he must still be alive. She, and her other selves, repeatedly formed a barrier as the robotic minions flung grenades, and then ripped two of them to pieces as they reached for more. "Azarath, Metrion, Zinthos!" She intoned, fighting to keep control of her dark magic. Outside of being White Raven, more power flowed through them than they had ever felt before. They sent it downward, and two more of their cybernetic foes were crushed. The dark energy got free for a second, and shattered the head of a third.

From the distance there came an explosion that lit up the night. She heard a scream of pure fury that chilled her, and for a second she thought he'd died. But it had come after the explosion. Her heart pounding, she concentrated, trying to remain in control of the dark magic they were using. "Azarath, Metrion, Zinthos!" She intoned, as they raised a barrier. Grenades came flying at it.

He looked at the weapon, frowning. Then he threw it as far as he could. Before it hit the ground it exploded. _Slade and his games, _he thought, as he turned and raced for Raven.

She sighed in relief as a green Peregrine Falcon swooped down and landed beside her. Reaching down they ripped two more of the robots below to pieces, then they raised the barrier again. "Nice to see you back." She said, sarcastically.

He shrugged. "The robots were just a decoy. Slade was going to shoot us from a distance."

"Oh." She said, focusing her dark magic along with her other selves. "Azarath, Metrion, Zinthos!" She intoned, fighting to control it. Reaching down they crushed two more.

"Crush the ones in the center." He said. "I will handle the ones on the outside." He slipped from the disc, and disappeared again.

He used the same trick as he'd used during Slade's last attack. Landing on them as a gnat, then turning to an elephant to crush them. Between the two of them the last of the cybernetic army vanished. Turning, he returned to her disc.

"Wonder how the others are doing?" He said, a worried expression on his face.

She had been worried about that too. The disc obeyed her commands, and hurled for the distance jewelry store where the rest of the team had headed.

They met the trio heading in their direction. With Starfire's starbolts and Cyborg's sonic cannon, along with Robin's explosive discs, they had quickly destroyed the fifty robots Slade had used to keep them busy. Then they had, in turn, rushed to help Raven and Beast Boy.

* * *

She collapsed on her bed, exhausted. The fight had drained her, and then there had been the healing. Minor wounds, but the grenades had inflicted a number of cuts on Cyborg and Robin. Starfire had remained above the explosions. Then there had been the cleanup, but she'd been excused from that, and allowed to rest. Still, she was beyond tired.

"Azarath, Metrion, Zinthos." She recited a few times, still stretched out on her bed, trying to gather herself. To keep her emotions in check. Then, with immense effort, she rose to her feet, and dragged herself to BB's room. _I've got to stop calling him that, _she thought wearily to herself.

* * *

A knock came on his door, and Raven entered. He looked at her, surprised she was still awake. Sleep was all he wanted, but the memory of the fight with Slade kept running through his head. He had failed to kill him. And the psychotic villain wouldn't fall victim to the same trick next time.

"Not asleep?" He wearily muttered, trying keep his eyes open.

She shook her head, and stumbled to a chair. "No." She replied.

"You need it." He looked at her with concern. "You had that massive fight, and then you had healing to do. Why aren't you asleep?"

"You plan on killing Slade? Don't you?" She simply asked, too tired to be less than blunt.

"What else can I do? If prison can't hold someone like Doctor Light, do you expect it to hold Slade?" He gave a direct answer. "The minute he's put inside, he'll be out again."

She rose from her chair, and staggered to the bed where he was lying. He cringed from her, knowing she didn't like to be touched. That she was empathic, and could sense emotions. Reaching out, she touched his arm. Thoughts and feelings not her own flooded her. She gritted her teeth and sought the source of the darkness she saw within him, knowing what she was doing was wrong. Very wrong. Invading another's mind like this. Still, she had too. After a minute she let go.

"Oh." She simply said, sitting beside him.

He looked where she'd touched him. "What did you do?" He asked.

The violet-haired girl looked down at him. _Despite my invasion of his mind, he's still not running from me, he still trusts me. _The thought nearly made her cry. "I looked into your mind." She explained. "I've sensed darkness in you for a long time now. I looked and traced it." She tried to shrug, but it required too much effort. "I'm sorry." She added.

"It's okay, Raven." He gave her a smile. "I've seen the inside of your mind. It's a beautiful place. I trust you."

Her heart broke, and became aligned with her emoticlones. She wanted him to be hers. But he was set on a course that would destroy him. "You would give anything to kill him." She simply stated.

"No." He denied, shaking his head. "Not anything. Not you, or any of the others. This is between me and him."

_That was a relief_, she decided. The hatred hadn't consumed him yet.

"What would you give to rid the universe of your father, once and for all?" He asked.

"Nearly anything." She replied, seeing his point. If her life would suffice to protect even her friends, she would give it. But the hate she'd felt... She hated her father, but not like that. "Killing him won't return her to you." She said, eyes half closed, nearly asleep.

"I know." He said. "I'm getting over her. I don't dream about her as much, and I don't see her everywhere I go." He tried to shrug. "But that doesn't mean he should go free. That there shouldn't be justice."

"And yet you still hate yourself, and Robin?" She asked.

"I've tried not to hate him." There was no use denying what he felt to someone who could look into his mind.

"You will lose everything if you continue like this." She said, too tired to move.

"I know." Came the simple answer. "I will kill, and lose my humanity, and Robin will become my enemy."

"I don't want to lose you." She honestly stated. Unable to stay awake any longer, she slumped down in the bed, fast asleep.

He blinked, looking at her, wondering what to do. He dared to reach out and shake her a little, trying to wake her. She remained asleep. He watched her for a while, meaning to slip away and find somewhere else to spend the night. He fell asleep beside her, as his weary eyes closed and the fatigue claimed him.

* * *

End of Chapter.

Thanks to those who read and review.


	11. Chapter 11

**I do NOT own Teen Titans**

_Note: No, they didn't do anything other than sleep. :)_

_Time: The next morning._

* * *

_**An Embarrassed Awakening,... The Picnic,... Billy Numerous,... The Dare,...**_

Warmth. Comfort. She'd never felt this good before. Within her there was peace. She was content, more than content. She was happy, but there was no magic running wild. Within her it slept, awaiting her call. Keeping her eyes closed, she stretched, slowly flexing each muscle, and then settled back down beneath the covers, seeking that wonderful feeling again. _I can sleep in for one day_, she decided. _It will be another hour before BB brings me breakfast._ Something about the thought nibbled at her mind, but she pushed it aside.

"Friend Beast Boy. Have you seen Raven?" A knock came on the door.

The violet-haired girl's eyes flew open, and she sat up, recalling the previous night. In the doorway there was Starfire, staring at her, her large eyes wide in shock.

"I'm so sorry!" The alien squealed, her face a bright orange. Turning, the embarrassed girl fled.

Raven gulped, and looked around. She'd fallen asleep in BB's room. To be more precise, in his bed. Sometime during the night she'd lost her cloak. _Probably took it off in my sleep, _she figured, _with it being so warm._ Beside her slept BB. Despite his sensitive hearing, he was still dead to the world.

She looked at the still open door. Reaching out she closed it. _Must have left it not quite closed when I came here last night, _she decided. _And when Starfire knocked it came open._

Not knowing what else to do, she closed her eyes, and settled back down to think. It was, after all, warm and comfortable. _I wonder if she'll be spreading rumors about this, _Raven wondered. She considered how she felt about that and, to her surprise, decided she didn't really care. The night before she'd join her emoticlones in deciding BB was someone she was interested in. That she wanted more than just friendship. The rumors would only be about something she wanted to make reality. But ...

"Hey B." A voice came through the door. "What did you do to Starfire. She's ..." Cyborg opened the door and stepped in. He froze in shock.

Annoyed, Raven reached out and cloaked him in her magic. Then she tossed him out through the door, which she firmly shut. _So much for wondering if there's going to be rumors, _she mused to herself. _Next thing you know Robin will ... _ Opening her eyes again, she lifted BB's desk and placed it against the door. _Better safe than sorry, _she decided. _Though it's probably a bit too late for that. _The thought amused her, and a slight smile crossed her lips. She would just have to deal with it.

Beside her BB stirred, but didn't wake up. He had a smile on his face. She watched, thinking. As much as she wanted more with him, it wasn't yet time. He had yet to fully get over Terra. And then there was the hate that was consuming him. Something had to be done about that. Later, she would discuss it with her emoticlones, and see what they had to say.

She wiggled around a bit, finding a new spot. Beside her BB's smile deepened, and he spoke a single word. She would have expected him to say something like 'Terra.' That wasn't what he said. Instead she distinctly heard him say 'Raven.' Something inside her squealed in joy, and a tiny bit of her magic got loose. She hoped the animal figure it coated, and then deformed, wasn't important to him. But he was dreaming about her, and from the smile she thought it was in a good way. Unable to stop herself, she stayed and continued to watch him.

He stirred and stretched. Strange enough his hands hit something. Not only that, but he could hear another heart beat, and smell,... He opened his eyes to see his hand was pushed against Raven's stomach. She was in the bed, lying on her side, watching him.

"Morning." She said, suppressing the amusement she felt at his expression of shock.

"Don't kill me." He said, quickly withdrawing his hand.

"Given I'm the one who fell asleep in your bed, I think I will let it skip this time." She said, watching the relief that crossed his face.

"You wouldn't wake up, and I meant to just leave and find somewhere else to sleep, but I ..." He gulped.

"It's okay." She said. "But you should know Starfire paid us a visit while looking for me." She watched his eyes go wide. "Then Cyborg walked in." She shrugged. "Don't you get any privacy here at all?"

"They saw ..." He gulped.

"Yeah. Expect there to be rumors." She said. "A lot of them."

"Sorry." He said, not really knowing what else to say.

She shrugged. "I don't mind." She honestly said, watching his expression turn to one of surprise. "But if you want to make it up to me, I'm partial to those bacon flavored waffles you made yesterday."

"I'll make you as many as you want." He replied.

"Mmmm. Trust me. There's no way you can make that many, unless you spent the whole day in the kitchen." She grinned at him. "Just enough for breakfast will be fine." She glanced at a clock. They'd really slept in. No wonder the rest of the team was up and about. It was after twelve.

* * *

She walked through the forest, able to hear her emoticlones in the distance. When she entered the clearing, they turned as one and grinned at her. "What?" She asked, made uncomfortable by all the stares.

"Way to go." Rage grinned. "Skipping right past the kissing part to sleeping with him."

"Fun." Happy exclaimed, bouncing around with a grin.

"Sweet." Love uttered, with a dreamy smile.

"Mmmm." Timid sighed, with a slight grin.

Watching them, she had an insight as to why her powers were so easy to control this morning. The dark magic ran out of control when her emotions did. But at the moment all her selves were in sync. There was no emotional conflict. Just harmony. It wasn't something that could form White Raven, but it shared many of the same properties.

"It was pretty nice." She admitted. "Though not sure why I felt that way. I mean, I fell asleep and didn't even realize I was sleeping next to him. So why did it feel so nice?"

"Of course you knew." Knowledge said. "Your empathy would have told you he was still there. Would have sensed something from him, and that would have affected you."

"Oh. True." She admitted, sitting down on the forest floor. "But you would also have felt what I did when I used that same sense to trace the darkness in him." Silence spread throughout the clearing.

"I'm the one who understands that hate the best." Rage said, looking down, no longer grinning. "But I'm balanced by the others. My tendency to hate is balanced by Love; my impulse to act without thinking is countered by Timid."

"So what do we do?" Raven asked.

"Balance the hate." Knowledge said. "Within him there are other emotions. They can be used to counter it. He's still capable of love."

"How? It's not as thought I can reach inside his mind and do that." She shrugged. "I can't even do it in my own mind." She pointed out.

"You can." Love said. "If he knows destroying himself will hurt those he cares about, he will falter on that path."

"He will stop to think." Knowledge said. "And weigh the costs of his hate."

"It will still exist." Rage said. "But it will be balanced." She looked up at the bright yellow sky, quiet for a bit. "I am the handmaiden of justice." She finally said, her demonic voiced filled with sadness. "Rage never burns brighter than when it's flamed with the fires of righteousness. Find a way to quench his need for justice, and the hate will fade to just a few cinders. It will cease to be all-consuming."

She sat back thinking, trying to follow the words of the part of herself she feared the most. "How?" She asked, after a while.

"His complaint is that human justice is lacking." Knowledge spoke. "A criminal like Slade can never be held by any jail. Perhaps if a prison can be found that can hold him, his need for justice will be satisfied."

"A place that can hold Slade. " She said, thinking on the words. "He's right, though. If a jail can't hold minor villains, it will never hold that monster."

"Find a way." Rage said. She looked around. "You won't be alone in trying. We will all be seeking a way."

Raven stood. "Balance the hate, find a way to satisfy his need for justice." She summarized. "But right now I got to face people who probably think I went all the way with him." She grinned at her emoticlones. "That's going to be fun."

"Let them think that." Rage said, with a wicked smile.

Happy giggled. "If they think it, then why not?" She dared to say, blushing.

"No." Raven, stated firmly. "Not yet anyway." She added, glaring at the emoticlone.

"Not yet." Knowledge agreed. "But that doesn't mean you can't tease him a little."

"Can I do that without destroying the tower?" She asked.

"A little bit." Knowledge said. "I think since we're all for it, there won't be too much magic running wild."

Raven looked thoughtful. "How will it affect him. He still loves Terra."

"It was your name he spoke in his sleep." Love said.

She nodded. "But remember, if something destroys the tower, I'm out of a home."

* * *

Strips of bacon, along with some deliciously flavored waffles, were waiting for her when she entered the kitchen.

"Thanks BB." She said, as she sat down to eat. Staring at the plate she didn't know which to start with. It had always been the bacon, but now ...

"Glorious morning friend Raven." Starfire entered the room, looking nervous.

"Morning." Raven said noncommittally, choosing to eat one of the waffles first. Then, she decided, she could rethink her options once again. She added some syrup, and cut off a piece. "What did you want to see me about earlier?" She asked the girl who was shifting her weight around, from foot to foot, nervously.

"I wanted to ask a question?" The alien said.

She swallowed the most incredible piece of waffle she'd ever tasted. "What question?" She asked.

"How do I get friend Robin to cook for me like friend Beast Boy does for you?" Her face turned an even brighter orange.

"How would I know?" Raven asked, puzzled, though her monotone gave no hint of it. She suddenly realized something neither she nor BB had considered before. Just what his cooking breakfast for her all the time would look like to Starfire. Cyborg and Robin would understand he was just practicing cooking, but the alien was a different matter.

"How did you get friend Beast Boy to cook you breakfast?" The orange-skinned Titan asked.

"He wanted to know how to cook, and I was the best bet for a guinea pig." She explained. "He want to be able to take Terra on picnics if she ever regained her memories."

"Oh. Truly?" The alien asked, looking downcast.

"You could just tell him that a picnic would be nice." The violet-haired girl suggested, cutting off another piece of waffle. She was drooling.

"I tried."

"And?" Raven prompted, apathetically.

"He said he didn't have time." The alien sat down, near tears.

"Oh. He is sort of focused on the hero bit." Raven admitted. "Too much actually."

"He's been in the evidence room since five this morning." The alien simply said.

"I'm guessing once Slade is caught, he will lighten up a bit." The violet-haired girl replied, appearing more focused on her food.

"Really?" The alien sounded hopeful.

"Yeah. Pretty sure he will. It's his major obsession. The rest of the villains he understands. But Slade is a mystery. So that drives him." She picked up a strip of bacon and nibbled on it. "Once we catch Slade, Robin will be a bit less obsessed. At least I think he will."

Beast Boy, who had froze when Raven entered, still terrified she might be mad at what had happened, started to look thoughtful. "You know, Robin hates to lose." He pointed out. He went pale when both girls looked at him, causing him to gulp, and stop speaking.

"And?" Raven prompted.

"Well, if he was playing a game, and someone made stakes, like he had to take Starfire out on a picnic then..." He shrugged.

"Brilliant." Raven said. "It seems like you might have a brain after all, BB." She actually smiled at him to show she was just funning.

He stared at her. _Raven smiling? Is the world ending? Again?_ He wondered.

"What game do I ask him to play?" The orange-skinned girl asked.

"It would have to be something he would think he would win." Raven said. "But something he would lose."

The alien frowned. "Is there such a game?" She wondered. "Wouldn't he know if there was a chance of losing?"

The violet-haired girl smiled again. "There is." She said, grinning at Beast Boy. "How about it BB?" She asked. "A friendly game of chess to help out Starfire?"

"No. Not sure why I played that one time." He said, wondering at all the smiles. _At least nothing was blowing up, _he thought, with relief. _And she does have a nice smile._

The violet-haired girl sat back to think. _The emoticlones did say I could tease a little, _she mused to herself. Standing, she approached the nervous boy and pulled him close; holding him tightly against her, she whispered in his ear. She backed off smiling. Nothing had blown up, and she felt good. Inside, her emoticlones all sang the same tune of satisfaction, and excitement.

"What did you say to friend Beast Boy?" Starfire asked, looking confused, and turning a darker shade of orange.

He sat down on a chair and gulped. _Is that really Raven, _he wondered. _It certainly looks like her. Sounds likes her. And even smells like her. _He wrinkled his nose. _She smells good._ That was something he already knew; he'd just never paid it much attention before.

"Play?" Raven asked, grinning at him. A fork on the table became covered in dark energy, and twisted out of shape. Focusing, she reigned in the dark magic. "I dare you." She said, smiling again.

He looked at the fork. "Just one game." He said, gulping, wondering just what he was getting himself into. And would she really follow through with it. That she might scared him, yet ...

Shaken, he stood and walked down to the evidence room. Robin was sorting obsessively through various items, muttering to himself.

"What do you want?" He asked, looking up at Beast Boy.

"More explosive discs would be nice." He replied, still shaken.

Their leader nodded. "Already made. Cyborg has them." He looked at the boy more closely. "Anything wrong?" He asked.

"Want to play a game of chess?" He asked.

"No time." Came the reply.

"Scared I'll win." Beast Boy asked.

"Now's not the time to be immature." Robin replied, harshly.

Anger stirred in him, reminding him he hated this person. Any thought of throwing the game vanished. "So you're scared I'll win. Wait til I tell that to Cyborg and Starfire." He turned to go away.

"Stop." Came the angry response.

"If you're that good, it would only take you minutes to defeat me." He told their leader, nearly growling. "But since you're afraid."

"I'll play." Robin fumed. "It will only take minutes to crush you."

"Then you won't mind a little wager." Beast Boy said. "Or are you chicken?"

"What is it?"

"If I win, you take Starfire on a picnic. One where you cook for her."

"That's ridiculous. It'll take too much time." Robin said, sounding furious.

"So you admit I'll win." Beast Boy turned to go away. "I'm sure the rest will want to know that."

"And when I win?" Came the shouted reply.

"What do you want?" Beast Boy asked, sounding amused. He watched as Robin struggled to come up with something.

"You got to eat real bacon for breakfast tomorrow." The leader said.

He frowned. He was only asking Robin to spend some time with his girlfriend. In return he was being asked to go against his beliefs. It was hardly fair, and his hatred of their leader grew.

"Scared." Robin taunted.

"Fine." He growled, in a tone that caused the boy to draw back.

"Wait." Their leader said. "I only said that to get you to back down." He added. "If I win, then you got to eat her cooking for a day, without complaining."

He calmed down and nodded. "You do know." Beast Boy said. "I've played against Raven, and can beat her." He turned, leaving their leader behind him, stunned.

"Five says Robin wins." Cyborg said.

"I got a hundred that says BB will win." Raven upped the stakes, and watched the the cybernetic Titan swallowed.

"Fine." He said. "A hundred."

Beast Boy turned to look at his best friend. "Nice stakes there. I got two hundred that says I'll win." He grinned. "Scared?" He asked.

"Fine." Cyborg said again, going pale.

"I need money for the mall of shopping." The orange-skinned alien said. "I bet two hundred too." She looked at Cyborg expectantly.

"Robin. If you don't win I won't speak to you for a month. For a year." The soon to be broke Titan said.

Their leader shrugged. "You're the one who made the bets, deals with it." He sounded grumpy. "Actually." He added. "I might as well get something out of this too. I bet two hundred Beast Boy will win."

The cybernetic boy fell from his chair. "What?" He yelled, shocked.

"Scared?" The leader asked.

"Fine." Came the reply. "But why are you betting against yourself?"

The teen shrugged. "I was stupid is why." He looked at Beast Boy. "Where did you learn to play?"

"Africa, with my parents."

"Since everyone else is betting two hundred, I might as well too." Raven said.

Cyborg groaned.

The game started slow, neither player willing to take a chance. Eventually, never one to remain passive, Robin went on the offensive. His attack was obliterated, and his opponent made deadly use of the opening the premature move had made. In an hour it was over.

Cyborg sat staring at the board, stunned. He'd just thrown away eight hundred dollars on a single game of chess.

"Yay!" Starfire bounced around the room, sometimes actually flying. "A picnic with friend Robin who is a boy. And money for the mall of shopping." She was ecstatic. "Thank you friend Raven; thank you friend Beast Boy." She actually turned upside down in the air.

Raven looked on, stoically. She recalled the dare she'd made with BB, and gulped, excited and scared. Inside she knew her emoticlones were beyond jubilant.

* * *

Four hours later the shrieking of alarms, with red lights flashing, brought all of them, with the exception of Robin and Starfire, running to the tower's central room.

"It's Billy Numerous." Cyborg said, staring at a screen. "I'll call Robin and Starfire back from their picnic."

"Don't." Beast Boy and Raven said as one.

Cyborg turned to look at them strangely. "It's going to be weird being the only single Titan." He said, shrugging. "Never thought I would be the last one to start dating."

Beast Boy opened his mouth to deny that he and Raven were a couple.

"So. How do we handle him without Robin and Starfire?" Raven asked, interrupting.

Beast Boy blinked, wondering if she even cared about the mistaken impression everyone had of them. "Stay up high and you bind everyone of them?" He suggested.

She nodded. "It'll take a while, but it might work." She turned to Cyborg. "Stay here and monitor the situation. If it gets out of hand then call Robin."

He nodded. "Be careful."

"Come on, BB." She said with a smile.

He followed, wondering if he'd fallen into an alternate dimension. She was smiling again.

* * *

They floated along Main Street. Raven reached down effortlessly, binding all the Billy Numerous clones they encountered. Once it would have been difficult, but inside her she felt her emoticlones working in harmony with her. There was no way the villain's duplicates could resist. Beside her, Beast Boy sat in the form of a golden eagle. His eyes found their foes, and one by one she bound them with her dark magic._ Wonder what BB thinks of the dare, _she wondered, as she sent the disc flying back to the tower.

* * *

In his room, he sat humming, confining the primal power of the beast. Finished, he continued to sit and think. Raven kept popping into his mind. She had a nice smile, and he couldn't get it out of his mind. Nor could he forget the way she'd whispered into his ear earlier. The way she'd pressed herself against him. And if she went through with what she'd said she would then ...

A knock came on the door. "Open." He called out. Raven entered. He gulped. _She's not going through with it, _he told himself. _She's just going to mock you for even thinking she would._

She smiled, excited. Sitting on the floor across from him, she wondered what to say. "I'll try to keep my emotions under control." She started. "But I can't promise I can. So if there's anything of value in here." She looked around.

"You don't have too." He said, staring at her.

"Don't say that. I _want_ to." She said, looking at him. "So does Happy and Timid and Rage and all the rest." She added.

"They do?"

She nodded. "If I try to stop now they might lynch me." She grinned. "Not that I plan too."

His heart started beating faster. Listening, he could hear hers beating fast too.

She moved closer, wondering just how to go about doing it. She had avoided anything to do with romance with a vengeance, so she didn't even have movies to go by. And the books she read rarely dealt with the current subject matter. Leaning forward, she close the distance until her lips brushed his. She felt him lean closer to her, and then they were kissing. The dare had been for five minutes. Heart pounding, she had no idea how to track the time. Nor did she care.

It wasn't like in that other dimension. That he could barely remember, given he'd thought he was about to die. This was ... He lacked works, and didn't care. Her lips were soft, and he could hear the beating of her heart. Smell her. There was no way five minutes would be enough. A lifetime wouldn't be. He opened his eyes, and found himself staring into her violet ones. She was just as excited as he was.

"Beast Boy." A knock came at the door and it opened. "I need to talk to you abou..." Robin stopped, staring.

She glared up at the intrusion. Around the room black magic started to run wild. The source of the annoyance was lifted, and tossed back through the door, which slammed shut with violent force. The dark energy calmed and, with the help of her emoticlones, returned to her control. She looked at the time. At least ten minutes had passed. "I lost track of the time." She lied. "We better start over."

* * *

End of Chapter.

Many thanks to those who read and review.

And no, there wasn't anything other than kissing. That was all that the dare was for. I doubt it was even french kissing. Give them time.


	12. Chapter 12

**I do NOT own Teen Titans**

_Not sure what happened with this chapter. It was 'supposed' to be the last one. But somehow the end of the story never seemed to arrive. One more chapter left after this. The story was supposed to be them getting together, with a few action scenes thrown in. Then there was supposed to be one final battle (in this chapter) to mark the end. Guess there will be one more. Still, I'm satisfied with the dynamics of the chapter. The way things get reversed. The steps their relationship take. Hope you like it.  
_

_Time: A week later._

* * *

_**Curses,... The Trap,... A Talk,...**_

She sat beneath a tree, watching her emoticlones. Timid and Rage were playing another game of chess, as were Happy and Knowledge. The other four were doing their own thing. "Again." She spoke, and closed her eyes. Around her, the others stopped what they were doing, and turned towards her. "Aldruon Enlenthranel Vosolen Lirus-nor!" She chanted, focusing all her will into the ancient spell. Despite their aid, she could feel the curse unravel, lacking the power it needed.

"Close." She muttered, sighing. "But not close enough."

"Practicing it will help." Knowledge said. "If we have enough time, we can do it."

She nodded. "But there are signs that Slade is moving about the city. He's planning something big, and both Robin and BB are going crazy."

Though the information was something she already knew, Rage let out a demonic growl. "Then we practice again tonight." She said, in a demonic voice, making it an order.

Raven nodded. "And tomorrow morning. Every chance we get until we can cast it."

* * *

A knock came on the door, and Raven walked through it.

"Morning." She said, smiling at him, eyes lit up.

"Morning." He answered nervously, watching the violet-haired girl.

She closed the distance, and dropped down on the bed beside him. Her blue cloak swirled around her, showing off her legs. Seeing his look, she suppressed a grin. Unable to wait any longer, she pulled him close and gave him a slow, lingering, kiss. She felt his lust. A steady, strong, feeling that flowed from him. It matched her own, and she regretted that he couldn't feel it. That the same primal urges that drove him, also drove her. Mixed with it was respect and admiration. He admired her wit, respected her intelligence. Cared for her deeply, with an intensity that was almost frightening. It awoke in her feelings that she couldn't hope to describe. She was accepted, and loved. Her heart was unable to bear it without aching, and her powers should have run wild. Instead they remained under control, only occasionally doing some minor damage.

She pulled back to watch his expression. It was good to know her efforts were appreciated, and she smiled. "How's the attempts at teleporting going?" She asked, resting her head against him.

"Still no success." Beast Boy admitted, not really caring at the moment, his heart beating way too rapidly for coherent thought.

"Try some more?" She said, reluctantly. That meant she would no longer be able to rest against him.

Slowly, he pulled free, and dared to return her kiss, before sitting on the floor.

She smiled a silly grin. He was starting to get used to the idea that she wouldn't zap him for doing things like that. Lying back, she watched.

He transformed into a snake and returned to human form. After a hundred futile attempts, he turned to look at her. In the mornings, like this, her stoic look was gone. A slight smile was always present on her lips. He thought she enjoyed these morning visits as much as he did. "The rest of the team thinks we're dating." He said, watching her reaction closely.

"Mmmm." She replied. "I can see why they would have that impression."

"Are we?" He asked.

She smiled. "Well, we have yet to go on a date." She pointed out.

He gulped. "Would you like too?" He asked.

"About time." She simply replied. "Of course I would." Her smile reached her eyes, and they lit up.

"Tomorrow?"

She nodded. "Where too?"

"Movie?"

"Horror?" She asked.

"Yeah."

"Good." She stretched and rested back on the bed, clearly happy. Inside she knew her emoticlones were freaking out. "How long you going to keep trying to teleport?" She asked.

"Until I can." He returned to the form of a snake, then reverted back being human. "Be useful to get through walls. Out of traps. All sorts of things." He explained.

"I find it useful at times." She admitted. "Maybe we're going about this wrong though. If you could teleport, like you've been trying to, it would have worked by now."

"How so?" He studied her.

"Let me think about it. You don't have enough power to create a portal to draw your body to you. Technically there shouldn't be a way around that, but maybe there is. You're not exactly normal, so there may be a loophole somewhere."

He nodded, and sat down on the bed beside her. "Okay." He said, daring to run his fingers through her hair.

A pencil on his desk became coated in black, and then snapped into a dozen pieces.

"Sorry." He exclaimed, removing his hand.

"Don't be." She smiled up at him. "I just need to learn how to control those tiny bits of energy that get loose at moments like that." Sitting up, she started to meditate. "Azarath, Metrion, Zinthos." She intoned.

He sat beside her and started to hum. After five minutes he opened his eyes. "Does the energy needed to teleport depend on the body size?" He asked.

"Not generally." She replied. "But that may be the loophole. Make a smaller portal, and go through in one of your smaller forms."

A knocked on the door interrupted them. "Hey B, there's a meeting in five minutes." Cyborg's voice came through the door. It didn't open. Raven had taught them walking in on her and BB kissing was a health hazard.

"Okay." Raven called out. She laid back, thinking. "Hey, BB?" She asked.

"What?" He gave her his undivided attention.

"If there was a way to imprison Slade, so he couldn't escape, would you give up on killing him?"

He closed his eyes and thought about it. The beast mocked such a concept. It wanted justice of a more primal kind. "How?" He asked.

"The same way Malchior was imprisoned. His soul and body confined in a spellbook." She waited for his answer, heart pounding.

He listened to the beast within him, and then to the rapidly beating heart of the girl next to him. "Malchior got free, twice. Remember." He replied.

Her heart sank. "I know."

"Can you cast the spell again?"

"Not yet." She admitted, heart sinking even further.

"Okay." He replied. "The answer had never been in doubt."

She blinked, and the figure of an animal turned black, before it deformed into something unrecognizable. "I'm going to have to replace some of those." She said, looking.

"It's okay." He considered what he'd just agreed to. That Slade would live. Part of his soul cried out against it, but ..." He sighed, and looked at the violet-haired girl next to him. He pulled her close and started kissing her. He didn't think he could handle losing her, and if he killed then he would. It was an acceptable trade.

Balance the hate, she'd been told. And so she had. She could still feel it burning in him, but she'd made the cost of letting it free too great. Now if only she could fulfill his need for justice, and create a prison that would hold a monster forever. But for now, she settled with returning his kisses.

* * *

"Okay team." Robin said in a determined voice. "Slade, or his robots, have been spotted at more than a hundred locations in Jump City. Anyone have any idea what he's up to?" He looked around the room.

"Looking for something, or planting something." Cyborg answered. "But we've scanned several of the areas, and haven't found anything."

"Distraction." Beast Boy said. "We waste our resources scouting those areas, while he's busy elsewhere?"

"Mind game." Raven stoically added.

Their leader sighed. "All three are good possibilities." He admitted. "How do we narrow it down?"

"Flip a coin?" Beast Boy suggested. A book, coated in dark energy, bonked him on the head.

"Plant a tracking device on one of the robots, or Slade, as the case may be, and track it." Cyborg suggested.

"How? They only show up for a minute at the most. We wouldn't have time to react." Robin replied, sounding frustrated.

"I would." Beast Boy said. "I could fly over an area, and when one of them appears make a dive at it." He shrugged. "But I doubt a tracking device would work. He would be expecting that. Be best if I switched to an amoeba, and let it take me to his base."

"That would be dangerous." Raven stated, a crack appearing in her facade.

"It's either that or wait until he acts." The green-skinned Titan replied, watching her.

"He would be on the alert for tracking devices." Robin decided. "On the other hand an amoeba is just a speck of biological material. It would be nearly impossible to find."

Raven frowned, and a pen on the table exploded, spreading black ink over the place. "Sorry." She said. Robin, she knew, would accept the risk due to his obsession. And BB would too.

"It's decided then." Robin said. "We will be scanning continuously, so just change to your human form for a second, and then back to an amoeba. We will detect your signal and be there as fast as possible.

Beast Boy nodded. "I'll start now. No telling when his next appearance will be." He smiled at Raven. "I'll be careful." He told her. "Very very careful."

She nodded. Being a Titan, they had all put their lives at risk at some point or other. But now it was different.

* * *

As a golden eagle, he soared more than a mile above the earth. Sharp eyes, able to see see something the size of a rabbit from two miles, peered down. It was only a matter of time before he spotted one of Slade's robotic minions, and arched downward, changing to a Peregrine Falcon. Soon he hit two hundred miles per hours, slicing through the air towards his target. As he grew closer, he chose smaller and smaller forms to avoid detection. Eventually, he landed on the cybernetic minion in the form of an amoeba.

With nothing to do but wait, he passed the time altering his internal structure, making the walls of the microorganism more sturdy. He hated being so fragile, and planned to be true to his word. He would be very very careful.

More time passed as the robot walked through the city, doing nothing that he could detect. Eventually it entered an underground room, and he became more alert. This must be to villain's latest lair. Pain ripped through him, and he reverted back to his human form.

"Welcome Beast Boy." A voice came from the walls. "How nice of you to fall into my trap."

He stood up, his whole body in agony, carefully looking around.

"Given our last fight, I decided you were too dangerous to be allowed to live." The calm voice said. "Someone with the power to be any animal he wants, combined with the ability to use tools. Deadly." There was a pause. "I'm surprised you survived the ultraviolet light in that room. It would have killed any normal microorganism."

He looked down at his body. It was covered in what looked like a bad sunburn. _If I hadn't used the beast's power to make the amoeba more sturdy I would now be dead, _he realized. _And if I hadn't worked to make my cell walls thicker and more resistant,... _He gulped, realizing just how close he'd come to dying.

"You needn't worry about your friends tracking you." The voice continued. "The walls will block any signal. Now, please die." It added, calmly.

The robot moved towards him. Shifting into an elephant, he charged. Even in the small space the cybernetic minion dodged his attack, and landed one of its own. Pain blossomed in his side, as it stuck his already injured skin. Turning, he kicked with his feet, and missed. A return blow struck his skull, making the world go dark for a second.

He changed to a humming bird, and darted away from his enemy. Turning, he shifted into a spitting cobra and spat venom at it. It was no Slade, and the liquid coated its face. The toxin would have no affect on it, but the liquid covered what passed for its eyes. He shifted into a great ape, and tore his blind foe apart.

"Interesting." Slade's voice came from the walls. "I guess I will have to poison you." A hissing sound came from the walls.

He switched to an elephant seal, and took a deep breath. In this form he could hold his breath for over two hours. Maybe four, if he used the meditation techniques Raven had taught him.

"Hrm." Came Slade's voice again. "I guess brute force will have to be applied again." The walls started to hum and glow. "The ultraviolet radiation will burn you to pieces." The psychopath calmly stated.

He shifted into a sea turtle. It would be able to hold its breath even longer than an elephant seal could, but it was less capable of fighting. On the other hand, it did have a nice thick shell to stop the UV rays.

"This is getting tedious." Slade's voice said. There was clicking sound.

Explosives came from holes in the wall and struck him. His shell cracked. _Only way out of here is to die, _Beast Boy thought to himself. He switched into a small whale and let the explosions start to rip him to pieces. Soon the chamber was coated in blubber and blood. He thrashed in pain, as his body was nearly torn to bits.

"More like it." Slade commented, his voice calm. "I wonder how long before you die?"

_Now or never, _he thought, trying to remain coherent as his body neared death. He shifted into his human form, and felt the projectiles tear into him. One leg was blown off close to the hip, another was shattered beneath the knee. One explosive found his left side, and wrecked massive damage on it, collapsing a lung. A grazing blow ripped flesh from his skull, but thankfully didn't explode. An arm was shattered. Using all his will power to overcome the pain, he made one last transformation. He became and amoeba again.

He immediately went to work constricting parts of his cell's walls, closing the gaps in them. Luckily he was in a liquid environment; one formed from the blasted remains of when he'd been a whale. The blood and blubber coating the floor made a perfect environment for him. He dove deep within the blood, seeking protection from the UV rays that still filled the room. As the cell walls finally closed, he forced excess salt out through them, and absorbed water.

A normal amoeba would have died with the damage he'd taken. As it was, he barely managed to remain alive. For nourishment he ate his own remains, and set about repairing the cell's walls. He'd constricted parts of them to prevent fluid loss, but the damage was still there. His internal structure was a disaster, but in the simplified form of an amoeba he might manage to stay alive.

Something started to burn him. _He's using acid to make sure I'm dead, _the shape shifter realized. He immediately set about reinforcing the walls once again. The acid ate through them, and he fortified them once more. The process continued for what seemed to be nearly forever. When he no longer had the resources to maintain them, he knew death was near. _Sorry Raven, _he thought. _I really did try to be careful._ He pictured her in his mind, and would have smiled if he could. He'd been lucky. He'd fallen in love twice in his short life.

Then he started to move, and felt organic rich freshwater surround him. Some time later it changed to salt water. Slade, believing he was dead, must have washed him down a drain, and out into the ocean.

He swam for the surface. He would have held his breath, if it had made any sense for an amoeba. Then he focused on two changes. One to his human form, and then back to an amoeba. The agony of being human, with his shattered body, remained in his mind for several minutes.

* * *

"Azarath, Metrion, Zinthos." The violet-haired girl intoned, her voice calm and emotionless. "Azarath, Metrion, Zinthos." She repeated again and again.

"Raven. Come to the tower's central room." Robin's voice came over her communicator.

She opened her eyes and frowned. A dark bit of energy shattered a wheel on one of her chairs. Rising, she left her room, walking through the door. From their leader's voice she knew something was wrong. She entered the central room and saw the entire team, other than BB, gathered there. They all looked shocked. "What's wrong." She asked. Her dark magic threatened to run wild, and she forced it under control.

"We got a message from Slade." Cyborg said. "All the robots in the city was a trap."

She frowned. "He has BB?" She asked.

She saw Robin gulp. "There was some video with the transmission." He said, looking ill. "I'm afraid Beast Boy is dead."

She blinked, and finally understood what had driven BB's need to kill Slade. "Let me see it." She said, voice without emotion. The video played before her, showing her the way BB had switched shape time and time again to evade the psychopaths attempts to kill him. Finally the image of a whale being ripped to pieces. And then ... She closed her eyes, seeing the final few images repeated over and over in her mind; the slow motion destruction of the one she loved. A leg exploding, ripped away in an explosion of blood. Another shattered, with more blood. An arm disappearing. His head covered in even more blood. His left side collapsing.

Inside, her emoticlones erupted as one. Black energy smashed the screen that had played the cursed video. The chairs exploded. Black energy started to run across the walls. "Did you find Slade?" She asked, her voice demonic, four eyes peering out from her hood. The walls quivered, and started to rip apart. The lights exploded. "Where is Slade?" She asked again, with the fury of a demon demanding an immediate response.

"We're looking for him, Raven." Robin said, wide-eyed. "We will find him. It won't help if you tear the place apart."

"Friend Raven?" Starfire asked, staring.

A sharp alarm rang through the room. Higher pitched than the usual siren that alerted them to a villain, and void of any flashing lights.

"That B's signal." Cyborg exclaimed, rushing to a console. "He's in the ocean." The cybernetic teen stated a second later, sounding hopeful. "Strange. It only lasted for about a tenth of a second ..." He studied the display, thinking. "Either he's still alive, and just switched to being human for a second, or it's a trap."

"Where?" The demonic voice demanded. Black energy coated a table and it just disappeared.

"We're all going." Robin stated. He looked at her. "We're using the T-ship. You follow in the air." He turned, and ran from the room.

She floated on a disc of pure blackness, sending forth her soul, seeking.

Thinking, he shifted into a planarian flatworm. It's ability to regenerate was legendary. He took nourishment from the ocean, and tried to speed the repairs with a healing trance. When he figured enough time had passed for the team to get to the spot, he changed back to a human, and then back into the worm. Each change to his human form risked death, and brought immense pain.

Her communicator showed the new location for the signal, and she sped towards it. Her soul found what it was seeking, and she scooped a small, green, worm out of the water. It swam around in her hands. Then it went still. _Healing trance, _she noted with relief. She poured her own energy into the badly damaged organism, and its wounds disappeared.

He felt her touch, and the energy she poured into him. He reverted to his human form, drained, but whole. Looking up he saw the four red eyes. "Hello Rage. Close call." He said, reaching out to touch her. "But I'm okay."

The four red eyes disappeared to be replaced with two violet ones. "You sure you're okay?" Raven asked, crying. Dark energy crackled around her, stirring the ocean into a frenzy.

"I am. Mind if we get back to the tower?" He laid down on the disc, one hand reaching out to touch her.

"Sure." She gave a weak smile, and sent the platform they rode back towards Titan's Tower.

* * *

"Close." Raven said to the listening emoticlones.

"Too close." Rage growled. "If he hadn't been okay I would have ..." She went quiet.

"But he is okay." Knowledge spoke.

Raven nodded. "He is. This time."

"Tomorrow we fight Slade." Rage said.

"If that's his lair, then we will." Knowledge said.

"And when we do, do we kill him?" Rage asked.

They were all quiet at that. "I don't know." Raven replied. "If we can't master the spell, then what choice is there?" Her expression mirrored that of Rage's.

* * *

She stood looking out through the window, wondering if she should spend the night outside. In her state who knew what damage she might do. Shaking her head, she turned and walked through her door. A minute later she entered the room where he was sleeping, and laid down beside him. Here, she knew, she wouldn't lose control.

He awoke as she laid down. "I know what you're thinking." He told her.

"Oh?" She snuggled close to him. Sorry to have woke him up, but glad to hear his voice.

"I want to speak to Rage." He told her.

"She can hear everything you say." The violet-haired girl said, wondering.

"But I want to see her eyes."

"Why?" She was puzzled. Still, she felt something rise inside her, and she let it push her to one side. Once she'd thought she was supposed to suppress and dominate her other selves. That had been wrong. There had to be trust. One couldn't fight one's self forever.

"Hello." He said, looking into four red eyes that glowed. If he hadn't know her, her appearance would have been scary. As it was, he knew she was a part of Raven.

"Hello." Her demonic voice held curiosity.

"Promise me no killing tomorrow." He stared at those four eyes, demanding an answer.

"But ..."

He reach out to put a finger against her lips. "Promise."

Rage gave it careful consideration, staring back into the shape shifter's eyes. She sighed. "It's not a decision I make alone." She replied. "I may be her killer instinct, but the others are just as capable of killing, should they be able to justify it."

He nodded. "Just don't fan that desire." He told her. "I love Raven, and all her aspects. For her to kill would change her irrevocably."

She stared, her four glowing eyes going wide at the words. "I will try." She said.

She took her rightful place in her body again. "Love?" She asked, with wonder in her voice.

He reached out to gently touch her, resting his hand on her cheek. "Can't you sense what I'm feeling/" He asked.

She nodded, smiling with tears in her eyes. "I love you." She answered, and snuggled closer.

Sleep claimed them, and they dreamt of each other.

* * *

End of Chapter.

Many thanks to those who read and review.

Aldruon Enlenthranel Vosolen Lirus-nor! : The curse used by Raven to seal Malchior back into the book she released him from.

In the opening when I said, _the way things get reversed_, I meant the way he changes from wanting to kill to not wanting to kill, while she changes to being willing to kill. At least until he speaks with Rage.

A date (planned at least). A confession of love. The final steps I wanted to show in their relationship.

A planarian flatworm can regenerate almost any amount of damage. In that form he would have slowly healed. Raven just speeded the process.

Next chapter, the final battle.


	13. Chapter 13

**I do NOT own Teen Titans**

_Time: The next morning._

* * *

_**Morning Talk,... The Attack on Slade,... The Mariana Trench,... The Movie,...  
**_

She stretched slowly, flexing each muscle, all the while watching the boy who slept beside to her. That she'd come so close to losing him terrified her. Settling back down, she reached out to caress his cheek, sensing the variety of emotions that came from him. _To kill, or not to kill, _she wondered. She needed to be able to cast the spell, that could imprison a monster within the pages of a book, but that would take more practice. And there was no time for that. Soon they would attack Slade in his lair.

The gentle touch brought him out of his dreams, and he reached up to clasp her hand. "I been wondering." He said, sleepily.

"About?" She prompted, her violet eyes peering into his green ones.

"I used a planarian flatworm because they could regenerate, even when cut in two." He added, stifling a yawn.

"Useful." She commented, glad he could make use of such a form. Without it he would be dead. A touch of magic reached out, and mutilated another of the animal figures he kept. She looked at it, and sighed. "Sorry." She added.

"Yeah. But what if I had been cut in two while in that shape, and you healed me. Would there be two Beast Boys now?"

"That would be interesting." She admitted. "But one astral body, so I think only one of them would have become you. I could be wrong, though."

"Oh." He wiggled closer to her.

Not complaining, she leaned in for a kiss. After a while, she reluctantly pulled away. "The rest of the team will be up soon." She said. "I'm going to prepare breakfast."

* * *

They had no idea what sort of defenses Slade would have prepared. Or even if it was truly his lair. Given the lack of information, they'd decided to strike hard, with massive firepower.

Beast Boy took to the air once again. He would remain outside, and follow the villain if he managed to flee. It was a position he was unhappy with given Raven would be going inside, but it was the one Robin had assigned him. He soared above the place where he'd nearly died, peering down with the keen eyes of a bird of prey.

Cyborg carried a massive battery on his back, that doubled the power he could channel to his sonic cannon. It was their main offensive weapon.

Raven watched as the cybernetic Titan repeatedly blasted the entrance to the lair. The massive steel doors buckled, and gave way. One fell to the ground, while the other hung from a single hinge. Resisting the urge to look up, to see if she could spot BB, she followed the others into the lair.

"Fire at the walls and ceilings." Robin ordered. "Clear them off any booby traps.

As Cyborg followed orders, the violet-haired girl reached out with her senses, trying to locate their target. The place didn't just reek of technology. There was also a hint of magic. She watched, as the room where BB had nearly died, was wrecked. Her own dark magic reached out to wreck havoc of its own, and she didn't try to reel it in.

Walking forward, Cyborg blasted another door, and then wrecked mayhem in the next room, before they entered.

"Welcome Robin." Slade's static filled voice came from the walls. "You found this place much earlier than I'd expected. It seems you're improving."

"Given it up, Slade." Robin yelled

"I don't think so." The calm voice of the villain replied. "You're down one member. Lets see how you handle losing all of them. When you're crushed, I will remold you into the perfect apprentice."

"I will never be your apprentice." Their leader responded, anger in his voice.

"We will see." The voice was confident. "It's just a matter of time."

"Blast the next door." Robin ordered.

Cyborg moved forward, and sent a stream of sound at the obstruction. It gave way. He then sent several more into the room, wrecking havoc on the walls and floors.

Raven silently followed. _To kill, or not to kill, _she wondered. Inside there was a massive room, filled with a stunning amount of technology.

"So that's where he gets all those robots from." Cyborg said, staring at the display.

"Blast it." Robin ordered.

The cybernetic Titan raised his sonic cannon. Before he could fire, explosive projectiles came from the far wall.

Raven's shield blocked them just in time. The fusillade of explosives created cracks in the barrier, and she moved with the aid of her emoticlones to reinforce it. The outpouring of death kept up for several seconds, and then faded.

"You've become more capable, daughter of Trigon." Slade's voice spoke again.

"Just blast the machines." She told Cyborg, who moved to obey. She reached out with her own dark magic, to aid in their destruction. Soon the array of 3D printing presses became piles of junk. They wouldn't be creating any more robots anytime soon.

"Do you truly think you can win, Robin?" Slade's voice asked.

"I will take you down." The boy answered firmly, his eyes scanning the wreckage.

"Become my apprentice, and I'll allow the others to live. Your resistance has already killed Beast Boy." The calm voice spoke.

She remember the feeling of watching that video. Seeing BB being torn apart. For a second her powers ran wild. Darkness encompassed the room, and a series of explosions ran through it. When they could see again, there were no even longer piles of the wrecked machines left.

"That was rather ... Interesting." Slade commented. "Tell me, daughter of Trigon. Did you have feeling for the shape shifter?"

She ignored the voice. His words were nothing but lies that brought ruin. "What's next?" She asked Robin.

"We check the rooms, one by one. Stay together." He ordered.

"You are over-confident, Robin." Slade said. "Time to change that attitude of yours."

A door to the left opened, and the four of them turned to face it. Cyborg was already lifting the sonic cannon to aim and fire. A bright light flashed throughout the room.

Raven cringed, and stepped back, as the burst of light blinded her. Being half demon, her eyes were very sensitive. Something hit her in the face, and she clawed at it, realizing that whatever it was, it was now wrapped around her mouth. Panic stirred in her. Gagged, she was unable to use any of her demon powers. While normally she could access most of them at will, anything that stopped her from speaking acted as a seal on all of them. Frantically, she tried to grab the edge of it, and peel it from her face. Only there didn't seem to be an edge. Vaguely, she heard repeated blasts of the sonic cannon.

Blinking several times, her vision returned. She continued to try and remove the gag.

"See how easy it is to neutralize one of you." The hated voice came from the walls. "That material is nearly impossible to cut. And the glue will have sealed it to her face. There is no way you can remove it." Confidence filled the villain's tone as he spoke.

Robin knelt beside her, and studied the gag. "I'm going to try and cut it." He said.

She nodded, and waited as he used the edge of one of his birdarangs to try and cut the seal.

"Not even a scratch." The worried leader said. "Blast each doorway, and destroy everything in the other rooms." He ordered Cyborg, looking up.

The cybernetic Titan went to work, while Robin tried to remove the gag from her again. Using the edge of one of his birdarangs, he even tried to peel it away. It left blood running down her cheek, and made no difference.

"Should I kill her, Robin? Or will you submit?" Slade asked. "Surely you don't wish to be responsible for another of your friends' death?" There was a pause. "But if they mean so little to you, do you even consider them to be friends? Maybe they are just tools for you to use." The voice spoke with a certainty that attempted to instill doubt in the hearts of those present.

"Damn you Slade." Their leader yelled, frustrated.

"Perhaps you think you can still win. Let me reassure you, that is not the case."

"Hey man. What's ..." Cyborg spoke, and then slumped to the floor. While his human eye showed he was still alert, it seemed his cybernetic components were no longer working.

Starfire flew to the unmoving Titan, and checked on him. "He's breathing." She said, with relief, a second later.

"It's amazing what a simple virus can do." Slade said, voice calm but serious. "Which one do you wish for me to kill first?"

Raven watched as their leader looked around, obviously struggling to come up with a solution.

"Let them go, and I will become your apprentice." The boy offered.

"No. Starfire screamed, eyes blazing.

"Too late, Robin." Slade spoke. "You've been a thorn in my side for too long." There was a pause. "But, I will make a deal with you. Become my apprentice and only one of them will die. I will even be generous, and let you choose which one."

"No." Robin replied. "Let all of them go."

* * *

_'Help.'_ Came a familiar cry. This time the shape shifter didn't hesitate to answer it. He folded his wings close to his body, and plummeted to the ground. Stretching them out at the last instance, he swooped into the lair. He found Raven gagged, Cyborg lying on the ground, and their leader at a loss as to what to do. Starfire was standing, eyes blazing, hands holding starbolts, with nothing to aim them at.

"You're alive?" The walls questioned, a hint of surprise getting through.

"Last time I checked." Beast Boy replied, looking at Raven, frowning. Her skin was cut where someone had tried to remove the gag. Too bad she couldn't change forms. An idea came to him. He leaned closer, and whispered. "Let Rage out."

_Let Rage out? Why? _She wondered. And could she do that while gagged? She felt the emoticlone rising within her, and she submitted without a fight. Within Nevermore, her mouth remained gagged, but Rage's was free. She was aware of the emoticlone reaching up, and touching her lips, making sure the seal was gone. Beside her Knowledge lifted her hands, and the gag disappeared, ripped away by dark magic.

"As I thought." Beast Boy said. "Your different aspects all wear different color clothes, and even have different sizes. Some like Knowledge carry different objects, such as glasses and a book. When you took control, the seal went with Raven to Nevermore."

"Thanks BB." Rage smiled, her voice demonic. She touch her lips again. "Now we know how to get rid of such seals." She grinned, and her eyes glowed with fury. "Being sealed pisses us off." She spoke softly, yet her demonic tone spoke of vengeance.

"Why isn't the aspect of Trigon running wild?" Slade demanded.

"I am not an aspect of Trigon." Rage roared in answer, shaking the walls with her fury.

"Now Rage. We know that. Does it matter what some psychopath thinks?" Beast Boy asked, smiling at her, and she calmed down. "Can you trace him?" He asked.

She nodded. "We're close enough now." She pointed down. "He's below us." A section of the floor was ripped up, and crumbled to rubble, as dark energy coated it.

Below them stood Slade. Or so they believed. Beast Boy swiftly switched to an eagle, and back. It was him. Grabbing two of Robin's explosive discs, he dropped down through the hole, turning into an amoeba as he did so. Pain coursed through him, and he switched back.

"Did you think I wouldn't prepare for that? Just in case." The figure spoke. "My armor has been modified to emit ultraviolet radiation. Approach within five feet as an amoeba, and you die."

"Actually I did expect it." The shape shifter said, rubbing his head. "I was just hoping."

"Hope is for fools." Slade replied.

"You're outnumbered four to one." Beast Boy noted. "Seems like hoping is what you should be doing."

Robin moved on the offensive, tossing two birdarangs at the villain. Beast Boy moved as well, switching to a humming bird, and flying within seven feet of his foe. He switch to a spitting cobra, and spat venom. Rage lifted a chunk of rubble, and sent it flying. Starfire cast starbolts, her eyes blazing with furor.

Slade knocked the two birdarangs to one side, and turned his head to avoid the venom. He ducked, and the rubble passed just above his head. The starbolts had no affect on his armor. "I don't need hope." He replied, moving with inhuman speed. His hand thrust out at Robin, striking with a blow that broke a rib. Turning he prepared to attack Beast Boy, but the shape shifter had already moved out of range. Another chunk of rubble came at him, and he smashed it to pieces with his fist.

The four backed off, and stood watching their foe.

"Again. At the same time." Robin instructed, wincing in pain.

Their leader tossed an explosive disc, while Beast Boy charged as an elephant. Rage attempted to bind the villain with her dark magic. Starfire sent more starbolts, along with two beams that came from her eyes.

A fist smashed him in the head, and his charge was stopped. He sank backwards, and fled to the far side of the room, his head streaming blood. Vaguely, he was aware of Slade countering all their attacks again.

"BB?" Rage cried, moving to his side. She reached out, and the wound healed. Slower, and with more effort than Raven would have required, but still it healed. She sighed in relief, the demonic sound echoing weirdly in the room.

"The defenses of my battle armor are impenetrable." Slade said. "Robin, watch as I deal with your friends. Know what true power is." He moved and struck at Starfire, sending her smashing into the wall. She fell to the floor, unmoving. He turned towards Beast Boy and Rage.

He felt Rage pull him through the wall.

"If I run wild, I can stop him." She said. "But it would also kill him." She sounded sad at this.

"You can teleport." Beast Boy said, thinking. "But can you teleport objects?"

She frowned, thinking. "Knowledge is better at that than I am. Why?"

He told her, and a smile crossed her lips. "Most interesting." She said. Her four eyes faded, and her red cloak became the yellow one of Knowledge.

"Can it be done?" He asked her.

"We can't." She said. But we can supply the power you need. Become a gnat, or something small." She instructed.

He did so, and she pulled him back through the wall, into the room with Slade again. She enclosed her hands around him in a circle, focusing their power.

"Where is Rage?" Slade asked. "Surely she didn't give up control of her body without a fight."

"What need is there to fight, when we are one?" Knowledge asked. She sent her energy into BB, and guided him. He vanished from between her hands. "Nothing is impenetrable." She spoke calmly, a smile playing on her lips.

The villain didn't have time to speak. He fell to the floor, shrieking in agony, hands on his chest. Blood blossomed out through his mask, and splattered on the ceiling. He thrashed for a few seconds, and then stopped. He chest continued to move, as if something was crawling around inside it.

Beast Boy felt her energy flow into him, and he projected his astral form into Slade's body. Then he pulled his corporeal form after it. As a gnat, he emerged inside one of his hated foe's lungs. He shifted into the form of a small sand cat, and slashed with his claws, shredding the lung that encased him. He ripped the insides of his foe to shreds, and then changed into a snake that easily wiggled its way out through Slade's mouth.

He reverted to his human form. "Can you cast the spell to place him in a book?" He asked Knowledge, who was staring.

"Is he even still alive?" She asked.

"He is. Though without an hospital, or some mystical healing, it won't be for long. He's lost a lung, and there's some other damage."

"Hrm." She mused. "Should we let him die?"

"No." He was adamant.

She nodded. "I've been thinking. The spell should work if Rage casts it. Curses are more in her nature, than it is for the rest of us." The yellow of her cloak was replaced with red, and Rage's four eyes peered out from it again.

"It worked." She said, a smile in her demonic voice. Holding a book in her right hand, she place her left on it. "Aldruon Enlenthranel Vosolen Lirus-nor!" She chanted, her voice confident. A white light erupted around the book, and reached out to connect to Slade's unmoving form. She lifted her hand a few inches above the book, and the pages started to flip over, with strange writing appearing as they did so. The light vanished, as did Slade, leaving behind a middle sized tome that looked nothing like the book she'd started with.

"Not finished yet." She spoke, a hint of fury in her already demonic tone. She placed the tome on the floor and started to chant again, holding her left hand over it. "Cal Kal Caz Kaz Cqz Kqz zqK zqC zaK zaC laK lac!" She intoned. A dark energy encased the tome, and when it disappeared the book was made of stone.

She looked up at him. "I stopped time for the book." She explained. "Knowledge was right. Curses do come more easily for me. That spell is something that's just outside of Raven's power, even with us aiding her. But not for me when they're helping me." She looked back down at the tome. "Now he can't do anything, not even rewrite the words like Malchior did. Time has stopped for him, so he can't even try to get free. Should anyone come across the book, they'll have two spells to break, not one. And if he's freed without someone close by to heal him, he'll die."

"How hard would the book be to break?" Beast Boy asked.

"Time has stopped for it. It can't be broken." She replied.

"Good. I know just the place for it."

Rage allowed Raven control of her body again, and together they aided their fallen friends. Starfire was just stunned, and came too several minutes later. Cyborg had already analyzed the virus that had attacked him, and countered it. He was just getting up when they checked on him. Robin was knocked out, with a single fractured rib, which Raven healed. Slade had wanted him for an apprentice, and had been careful to not harm him too much.

* * *

Three hours later, the five of them sat in the T-ship, drifting over the Mariana Trench. It was the deepest part of the ocean in the world, being nearly seven miles deep. The weight of the book would bury it in the silt at the bottom, and time would only cover it deeper. No one would find it there, and no one would try to free their hated foe.

Robin was against it, but he'd been outnumber three to one, with Cyborg abstaining. Starfire, for all her gentle ways, was still born of a warrior race. And she wanted to never see the TarGalz, as she called Slade, again. Raven and Beast Boy pointed out that the villain was still alive, sort of. He was just in a prison he would never be free from.

In the end the three had worn their leader down. He too was afraid of what Slade might do, should he ever get free again.

* * *

They rode one of Raven's discs of black magic to the movie theatre.

_Should I buy a moped, _Beast Boy wondered. He now had enough money. _Or perhaps she prefers to travel this way, _he thought, looking at her. _It's a pretty nice way to get about. No worries about traffic, it's above most of the noise, and the view with all the lights is pretty cool._ He swallowed nervously.

"Something wrong?" The violet-haired girl asked, smiling at him.

"No." He shrugged. "Just a bit nervous." It wasn't as though he could hide it from her. Their hands were touching.

"It's just a movie." She replied, lying. It was much more than that. It was their first date. Her heart was beating way too rapidly. She was nervous too.

They landed in a dark parking lot, and entered the theatre.

Bright lights, and noise, assailed her. _It'll be okay once we get into the movie, _she thought. _It'll be dark, and there'll be the show to watch._ Being Friday the thirteen, the whole list of movies was dedicated to horror. It was up to her to pick out what she wanted to see. She studied the titles. So many shows meant to chill the blood, and send shivers down ones spine. She smiled. _It'll be fun_, she mused. "There." She said, pointing at a title that seemed interesting.

"I'll get the tickets. You get the snacks." He passed her a twenty.

"Hrm. I can pay for the snacks." She said, refusing the money.

"First date, so let me." He looked at her, hope in his eyes.

_Something he really wants to do, _she realized, taking the offered money. She dared a peck on his cheek, before she turned and headed to the snack counter. She didn't need to ask what he wanted. There'd been enough movie and pizza nights, that included other snacks, that she knew it as well as she did her own likes.

The movie started out good, holding hands with him was even better. It was strange to feel what he was feeling, as he watched the show, and held her hand in return. Soon her heart was pounding, and she decided she could forego a few minutes of the movie to appease her more baser needs. Soon they were kissing. The excitement of it being their first date, along with the nervousness, added to the feelings coursing through her. Bits of energy started to break free.

A dozen drinks suddenly decided to explode, coating the whole room. Huge tubs of popcorn spewed their contents into the air. The movie screen turned black, and started to form small rips. Above, the lights started to spark briefly, and then shatter.

Already on edge from the horror movie, the whole theatre erupted in panic. "Ghosts." Someone screamed. "Zombies." Shrieked another voice. "Aliens." Came another terror filled yell.

The two of them watched the mayhem, terrified someone would get hurt in the panic. She had to reach out twice to make sure no one did. Soon the place was empty. Together, they got up and left.

Above, sitting on a black disc, they watched as not just that one movie room, but the whole building was evacuated.

"It seems." Beast Boy mused. "There's a reason Titans have pizza and movie night, rather than going out to a theatre."

"I let it get out of control." She replied, staring down, heart breaking.

"I don't think anyone is going to mind." He said, watching the crowd below. "Being Friday the thirteenth they went to the movies to get scared. Now they can brag to their friends how they were at the theatre when a ghost showed up." He grinned at her. "I'm sure they're going to remember this night forever."

"Maybe." She replied, still staring down.

"Oh well, let's find a creepy cafe, and have something to drink." He suggested. "We can always rent the movie tomorrow."

She nodded, cheering up. She had the perfect place in mind. It was nice and dark, and they could kiss in there without anyone seeing them. The disc of dark magic obeyed her command, and soared through the sky.

* * *

End of Story.

Many thanks to those who read and review.


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